Reading:Harry Potter and The Black Cousins Book 2
by Chimera-mystic
Summary: Things aren't as easy as they should be. Sirius is a single parent wit three boys to look after. Harry has stalkers, Aries makes a friend, and Leo keeps needing to be rescued. To make matters worse something is petrifying students and Dumbledore is not winning himself any favors. Outside the books we deal with jealousy, family feuds and so much more.
1. Chapter 1

**{Okay, I leave on my trip and won't be able to update for about two weeks. Hope you enjoy, and I'll make it up when I get back!}**

**Chapter 1. Shoes to Fill**

"I am never going to get over how weird the titles are." Frank said. Many nodded.

**Sirius Black was undeniably happy.**

"Are all the books going to start with Sirius?" James asked. "No." The three boys said.

**He was out of Azkaban, his boys were with him and he got his friend Remus back. His only complaint was that he wanted to raise the boys from the start, not have to jump ahead ten years.**

"And we'll make sure you do." Harry said as he moved Teddy.

**But no biggie. Okay big biggie, but he can deal with it.**

"You are just like your Papa." Shizuka said fondly. Leo grinned.

**Sirius hummed something off key as his friend Remus walked in and looked at him like he grew a second head. "Sirius, are you **_**cooking?" **_**Remus asked in shock.**

"WHAT!?" James, Remus and Regulus asked in shock. Sirius blushed. "He gets really good at it, actually." Aries said. "Aries, quick question." Barty said. "Shoot." "What the bloody hell did you do to your hair?" Barty asked pointing at the white streak in his hair. "I think it gets explained in a later book." Harry mused as Teddy reached for his glasses.

**Sirius nodded. He had pulled several of Shizu's in English cookbooks and decided to make breakfast.**

"You actually read them?" She asked in surprise.

"**Since when do you make breakfast?" Remus asked jokingly. "Since Shizu tricked me into learning how." Sirius answered. It still hurt to bring Shizu up, but that stab in his heart was just a dull, ignorable ache. **

Leo winced and Shizuka cuddled Sirius. Aries and Harry were snickering at Leo's embarrassed look at his parents getting cozy.

**Remus winced a bit. "Oh." He said awkwardly.**

"Very awkward." Remus amended. "Oh I remember this morning!" Harry crowed. He ignored the curious looks he was getting and played with Teddy.

"**So what is it?" Remus asked looking at the stove. "Very Japanese actually." Sirius said. **

"So very tricky to make." Shizuka said. "Really?" Liliana asked curiously. "Well it's very detailed and time consuming, but thankfully it's rather simple ingredients."Shizuka said.

"**Why is that pan rectangular?" Remus asked. "To roll the **_**tamagoyaki."**_** Sirius answered. "The what?" Remus asked. "Rolled omlete."Sirius answered.**

"That takes time and patience." Shizuka said with a smile. "How long did it take you?" Barty asked the book.

"**Shizu really taught you a lot." Remus said. "She did." Sirius said as he tried to roll the meticulous egg dish. **

"You are really set on that." Dorea noted.

"**Rice, eggs, vegetables, miso soup and fruits." Sirius said as he moved to set the table.**

"Too bad you don't have fish." Shizuka said. "It's pretty tasty." Leo added making his mother smile.

"**How long have you been up?" Remus asked. "A couple of hours." Sirius said simply. "Why do you ask?" "Because I would've thought you'd sleep in and order take out." Remus dead panned. **

"I thought so too." Sirius added.

"**Shut up, I'm not an irresponsible prat anymore." Sirius said in a huff. **

"Did I just insult myself?" Sirius asked. "Yep." Remus and James choired.

"**No, you've become a single house wife." Remus joked.**

Everyone except Sirius laughed.

"**Oi!" Sirius snapped. "Are you or are you not wearing an apron?" Remus asked smirking. **

"The scary thing was he looked like a real house wife." Harry added.

**Sirius gave him the universal sign to 'fuck off.'**

The Marauders snorted.

**That's when they heard the sound of boys running upstairs. "Be careful!" Sirius shouted. **

"You sound like my mum." Alice noted. Sirius blushed.

"**Did you manage to find your shoes yet?" Remus asked. "No, Aries and Leo thought it'd be funny to hide them." Sirius said with a twitching eye.**

"He just gave up and bought a new pair." Aries said.

"**Padfoot!" Harry said as he walked in to the dining area. "What?" He asked at Harry's puzzled look. "Are you wearing an apron?" He asked.**

Everyone laughed hard.

**Sirius groaned and threw his hands up in defeat.**

"Wise move." Charlus chuckled.

"**Anyway, is breakfast ready?" Harry asked.**

All females shook their heads. _Boys and their food._

"**Yes." Sirius taking the apron off. Harry looked up at the ceiling. "FOOD!" He bellowed, and shortly after Leo and Aries were at the table.**

James and Sirius shared a grin.

"**Black family appetite." Remus muttered. **

"True." Andromeda said with a nod.

"**Shut up an eat Moony." Sirius said.**

"Déjà vu." Remus said.

**Breakfast so far went off without a hitch. It was awkward when they first lived together again after so many years, but now they were a normal family. **

"As normal as it can get." Sirius muttered.

"**Moony, how come you're visiting today?" Leo asked as he munched on some rice. **

"To play house." Remus said sarcastically. Sirius swatted his friend.

"**I needed to help Sirius with some stuff today." Remus said as he dug into the food. **

"Of course." The marauders chorused.

"**Hey, Uncle where'd you learn to cook like this?" Aries asked as he stared at the **_**tamagoyaki**_**. "Leo's mom." Sirius answered. **

"Thank you Auntie." Aries thanked.

"**When I rented with Moony here, neither of us could cook, and we lived off of leftovers. Shizu challenged me to learn how and taught me." Sirius answered.**

"Of course you competitive…" She said before Sirius cut her off with a kiss. Teddy made a cooing noise and Leo blanched.

"**Then Lana taught him. I think out of all of us, only you could cook." Remus answered. **

"Really?" The Italian asked curiously.

**Sirius grinned. "Hey, I like to eat, might as well make it myself." Sirius replied. **

Sirius looked contemplative at his future self's words.

"**What're you two doing today?" Harry asked. "Cleaning out an old house, going over bills and whats its." Sirius replied dully.**

Sirius groaned.

**The three pulled faces. "I'm not asking you boys to help." They instantly looked surprised but glad.**

"I think we were used to being house elves." Aries said.

**Breakfast ended shortly after and only Sirius and Aries stayed back. Harry and Leo left to go finish homework (or in Leo's case plan mayhem)**

"Of course. I have to make the marauders proud." Leo said interrupting himself.

**before they left and Remus left to get Andromeda.**

"Babysitting." Aries and Harry added.

"**What's up Aries?" Sirius asked as he put his dishes in the sink. Aries looked down for a moment. "Hey, Uncle Siri." Aries said. "Yes?" Sirius asked. "Can you tell me about my parents?" Aries asked. **

"This is awkward." Aries said looking at the ceiling. Regulus nodded.

**Sirius stood still for a while and thought hard about what he could tell Aries.**

"Sorry." Sirius said sheepishly.

"**Well, your father was the family favorite." Sirius said shocking Aries. **

"I was used to being hated." He replied at the questioning looks he got.

"**Really?" He asked. "Yes, he followed family tradition and made our parents proud, while I was the rebellious troublemaker." Sirius said. **

"Wonder where I fall in?" Aries muttered.

"**So you were the white sheep of the Black family?" Aries asked.**

Sirius laughed

**Sirius barked out a laugh. "You could say that. My family wasn't full of nice people, so I left to be myself." He said.**

"I love how much your understating." Andromeda said not noticing the looks from the proper Blacks.

"**You see Aries, not every family is perfect, but well… I just want you to know that your dad did make some mistakes in his life, but I don't want you to completely hate him for it. He just did what he was taught by your grandparents."**

Regulus looked at his now grown son. Aries gave him a brief smile.

**Aries was quiet for a moment. "What about my mom?" he asked. Sirius thought hard. "I do remember your father being very protective about her." Sirius told Aries.**

"You have no idea." Aries said. Many people looked questioningly at him, but he just motioned for Leo to continue.

"**You see Aries, back then it was a war, and people did what they could to keep their loved ones safe. I never really got to know her since Regulus would try his best to shield her from the war, but I can say you are quite a bit like her." Sirius said. **

Aries smiled.

"**But I look just like Da." Aries said in confusion. "I know you do. I grew up with him and had to rummage for that wedding photo your mother gave me." Sirius said.**

"I call bullshit." Leo said.

**Aries gave him a look. "Okay I had Moony look for it." Sirius amended.**

Remus rolled his eyes. "Called it." Leo said with a smirk.

"**But you have her singing voice, and trust me that's a miracle, nearly every Black is tone deaf." Sirius said. **

"I know." Aries grumbled as he rubbed his ear.

"**Mr. Ollivander mentioned that too, when I got my wand." Aries said. "He has a good ear then. You also have your mother's creativity. Merlin knows my brother was a stick in the mud." Sirius said.**

"You are!" Sirius defended at his brother's glare.

**Aries chuckled a bit. "Go keep your cousin from blowing the house up would ya? Andy's coming over and I would rather the house be in one piece." Sirius said. Aries nodded and walked off. **

"The joys of being the oldest." Aries said sarcastically. All of the oldest siblings nodded.

**About five minutes later, Andy flooed over and into the living room. "Sirius." She said happily before enveloping him in a hug. He hugged his cousin back. "Good to see you too Andy." Sirius chuckled.**

Andromeda shared a warm look with her also disowned cousin.

"**You'll keep them out of trouble won't you?" Sirius asked. She gave him a shrewd look. "Since when did you not want to cause trouble?" She asked. **

"THE END IS NEAR!" James said before pretending to die.

**Sirius just laughed. "I'll be back soon!" He shouted to the boys upstairs. **

Leo made a face at the next line.

**Sirius and Remus apparated to what was left of 12 Grimmauld Place.**

"WHAT!?" Sirius asked in shock.

**The chandeliers and gas lamps were covered in grime and cobwebs, the wall paper was peeling, the carpet was worn thin, and his mother's troll leg umbrella stand was a dust magnet. **

Everyone grimaced in disgust.

"**Holy fucking shit it got worse!" Sirius spat.**

"I never thought that possible." Sirius said in shock.

**Then a pair of moth eaten curtains Sirius didn't recognize zipped open to show the screeching portrait of his dead mother.**

"Ugh." Sirius groaned.

**She was wearing her favorite black cap, and as she screamed her eyes rolled back, her yellowing skin went taut as she screeched and woke all the other portraits up.**

"Charming." Frank said nervously. "All that's different is that she's older." Sirius said.

**Remus clamped his hands over his ears and Sirius growled as he moved to close the curtains.**

Leo looked shocked at the words.

"**YOU FILTH! SHAME OF MY FLESH! YOU DARE TO HAVE BROUGHT THIS VILE SCUM INTO THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS!?" She screamed at Sirius.**

"Can I not meet her?" Leo asked nervously. "You won't have to if I have any say in it." Sirius solemnly swore.

"**SHUT UP YOU HAG! SHUT UP!" Sirius shouted as he struggled to close the curtains. **

"Black family lungs at its finest." Harry said trying to lighten the mood.

"**BLOOD TRAITOR! I HOPE YOU LEARN YOUR PROPER PLACE!" She shouted. "SHUT UP!" Sirius yelled as Remus helped him force her curtains closed.**

"I thoroughly don't like her." Shizuka grumbled darkly.

"**WHY DID YOU LIVE WHILE REGULUS DIED!?" She screamed before the curtain was drawn closed.**

Everyone winced and looked cautiously at Sirius. His expression was unreadable. "Just finish reading Leo." Sirius said in a toneless voice.

**Sirius glared at the portrait frame. "Sirius." Remus said. "Well Moony, you've met Mother dearest." Sirius said bitterly before walking past him.**

"If you didn't fight with her all the time-" Regulus started. "Don't." Sirius said in a grave voice.

"**Let's do this one floor at a time." Remus said. Sirius felt bile rise in his throat. He hated it here. **

Sirius' expression showed that that was an understatement.

**Sirius and Remus worked quickly as they spelled away most of the dust and cobwebs, but there was a bad infestation of many pests.**

Sirius shuddered.

**They wandered along the ground floor and into the dining room. The only real issue was the spiders living in the china drawer.**

"Where's Kreacher?" Regulus asked.

**Sirius caught sight of a pair of batty ears. "Kreacher!" Sirius shouted.**

Regulus went "Ah."

**Sure enough it was a weathered and old Kreacher. "What do the Blood Traitor and his filth want in Mitresses home?" The ancient house elf croaked. **

Sirius grimaced.

**Sirius glared at him. "Shut your mouth." Sirius snarled. "I am the master of the house, and you will not speak like that around me, my friends or my family."**

Regulus sent a dark look at his brother.

**Sirius never understood why Regulus cared about Kreacher, **

"I treat him right." Regulus answered. "I would've if he did the same to me." Sirius spat.

**but if Sirius ever managed to say any of that biased hate to his boys he'll take his head.**

Regulus held his tongue.

"**Master has family?" Kreacher croaked. Sirius felt his anger grow at the thought of Kreacher spewing his parents' nonsense to the boys.**

Many faces wanted to say that it wasn't nonsense, but Leo continued before it could lead to an argument.

"**Kreacher just go and clean the kitchen." Sirius growled. Kreacher walked away and kept talking to himself about Walburga and Regulus. **

Aries grimaced.

"**Was that your family's house elf?" Remus asked in shock. "Want to meet the rest?" Sirius asked grimly.**

Sirius hoped he wasn't mentioning what he thought he was mentioning.

**They wandered down the hall, cleaning as they went towards the staircase. "Oh sweet Merlin!" Remus cried. Sirius grimaced.**

"Leo blanched a bit.

**His mother had this tradition of 'honoring' her favorite house elves. If you call mounting their shrunken heads on the wall honoring. **

Sirius got many disturbed looks. "Mother always did that." Regulus said with a grim expression. "And here I thought Orion was over exaggerating." Arcturus said.

"**You can see why I kept staying over breaks." Sirius muttered.**

"And now you live with us." Dorea said firmly.

**Remus was pale and looked like he might be sick. "You were raised here?" He asked in disbelief. "Unfortunately." Sirius grumbled.**

Sirius grimaced.

**They briefly cleaned the drawing room and the guest room. They refused to go into the bathroom when there was black slush in the bathtub.**

"EW."

**Sirius refused to go into the tapestry room and made them go towards the upper floors.**

Sirius and Regulus looked pained by the mention, but they said nothing.

**They managed to make some progress when they came to Sirius' old room. **

Sirius gave a weak smirk.

**Remus walked in and gave Sirius this incredulous look. "Did you have to have this many muggle models on your wall?" Remus asked. Sirius just barked out a laugh. He knew all the bikini wearing muggle women pissed his mother off so he permanently stuck them there.**

"But they're not as pretty as Shizu." Sirius said making her blush a deep scarlet.

**They had wandered back down to the ground floor and decided they would try to get rid of his mother's portrait. **

"Permanent Sticking Charm." Harry added making his godfather groan.

"**Why're we cleaning this place again?" Sirius asked in a bitter whisper. "You're renting the other place and the lease ends soon, and you said you wanted to have the boys live in one of the properties. **

"We have too many." Aries said.

"**I didn't think people would completely destroy my house!" Sirius hissed. **

Many people hissed at that.

"**You're lucky I rescued all of yours and Shizu's belongings." Remus muttered as he got rid of a boggart. "And all of the other properties are too far to move into now. Besides you said you wanted to stay close for the trial." Remus added. **

"I forgot about that." Barty added. Sirius began to rub his hands evilly.

**Sirius grimaced knowing his friend was right. He swatted away a doxy before it bit him. **

"IT GOT _THAT _BAD!?" Many people asked in shock.

"**We need plenty of Doxycide. Let's go." Sirius said before they both apparated to Diagon Alley. They walked through Diagon Alley and they got hearty sandwiches to eat as they shopped. **

"That must take a lot of energy." Narcissa said.

**Sirius kept noticing something that was really bugging him. He was getting ogled at.**

Leo shuddered. Like he needed those ideas in his head.

**His bad mood was beginning to sour when he kept feeling people eye him like a full pocket or a piece of meat. **

Shizuka wrapped her arms possessively around Sirius. His friends catcalled and wolf whistled at him.

**A week after the boys moved in with him, his trial and freedom make the front pages. He kept getting letters and odd gifts from people he used to work with as an Auror. **

The three from the future shared sadistic smirks.

**Aries burned most of the letters and had Leo smash some of the gifts against and old tree. **

"He had some freaky shit then." Aries said. "Like what?" Sirius asked curiously. "Some weirdo sent you a used thong." Everyone grimaced. "Please tell me you burned it." Sirius said. "He even burned the ashes." Harry said. "I shattered some doll that looked like him." Leo said. "Fame is a bitch." Harry groaned.

**Aries told him that those who weren't really sorry could 'eat their sweaty socks' before he went back to starting their fireplace.**

"Now I say worse."

**Harry wanted to blow the things up, but Remus had to mention the underage magic law so he settled for dropping them from his broomstick.**

"It was so much fun." Harry said.

**Sirius snickered at the memory. Sirius was glad when he and Remus had left Diagon Alley with half the store's inventory of Doxycide. **

"You have no idea how lucky you are." Harry said. Teddy babbled and clapped his hands as his hair turned emerald.

**Sirius made a quick detour to buy a stock load of wolfs bane for Remus. Remus protested it but Sirius ignored him.**

"Of course." Sirius said silencing a spluttering werewolf.

"**Here. Take these home. I'll start on the doxys." Sirius said. Remus agreed reluctantly before Sirius apparated back to his family home. **

And Sirius frowned.

**When he got there he wasn't expecting his mother's portrait to be screaming again about his brother.**

Regulus looked sheepish.

"**REGULUS! YOU CAME BACK!" She shouted as Sirius somehow closed the curtains.**

"Huh?" Regulus asked in confusion. He was pretty sure he was dead in the story.

**He wandered down the hall thinking this whole place had gone mad, when he heard someone scream. **

Aries shifted his eyes.

**He dropped the doxycides and ran down the hall and up to the upper floors. **

"There are so many things that could go wrong up there." Sirius groaned.

"**Sirius." The portrait of Phineas Nigellus Black said. "What?" Sirius snapped. "Care to explain why a young boy who's the spitting image of Regulus scurried down the hall?"**

Everyone turned to look at Aries. Aries blushed a bit.

**He asked. Sirius paled before he took off down the hall, ignoring the portrait's huff of 'Rude.'**

"He's a snob." Leo whined.

"**Aries!" Sirius shouted. The house was quiet. He wandered down the hall and noticed finger prints on the dusty door not too far from his room. **

Sirius hoped he was wrong about his gut feeling.

**Sirius blanched. 'Do Not Enter Without the Express Permission of Regulus Arcturus Black.' The door that sign was on was ajar.**

Regulus went rigid.

**Sirius opened the door slowly. "Aries?" He asked. Sure enough Aries was there in the dusty Slytherin green room. **

"Proud much Uncle Reggie?" Leo asked with a smirk before going back to reading.

**Aries was staring in horror at the wall of newspaper clippings. They were all about Voldemort.**

Regulus swallowed. This couldn't end well.

"**Aries?" Sirius asked worriedly as he walked closer. Aries snapped his head at him with disbelieving eyes. Sirius pulled his nephew into a tight hug.**

"Papa's hugs are awesome." Leo said.

"**He supported him…" He said hollowly. Sirius had nothing to say. He planned to tell Aries when he was a bit older about the extent of his family's ideals.**

Harry looked carefully at the two.

"**Siri." Aries said in a muffled voice. Sirius winced. He remembers when Regulus used to call him that.**

"Really?" Aries asked in surprise. "Back when we were children." Regulus added.

"**Was my Da a bad wizard?" He asked thinly.**

"I know you're not." Aries said looking at his fourteen year old dad. Regulus gave him a wirey smile.

**Sirius pulled back and looked Aries straight in the eye. "Your father was a determined and talented young wizard who would put family first." Sirius said.**

Regulus was shocked that his brother would say something like that about him.

"**He unfortunately believed my family's ideals and did this" He said motioning to the news clippings "to make your grandparents proud." **

Regulus averted his eyes. He could see why Aries was so upset. He supported the man who played a major role in ruining his childhood.

**Aries had a diminished look in his eye. "Aries-" "Did he join him?" He asked hollowly. Sirius waited painfully. Should he tell Aries the truth? Or should he lie and keep him in the dark?**

"I'd prefer the truth." Aries said looking at his nails then.

"**He did." Sirius said. Aries shook badly and Sirius hugged him tightly. He wasn't sure if he made the right decision when he felt his robes dampen.**

Aries ignored the looks he received. "I'm glad you told me the truth though." Aries said to Sirius.

"**Aries, why're you here?" Sirius asked. Aries wiped his eyes quickly. "In my vault, Da left a key for me." He choked. "And it opens something in this house." Sirius finished.**

"I forgot about that." Regulus said. Aries gave him a lopsided smile.

**Aries nodded. "Did he mention what it was?" Sirius asked. "He said it was a chest." Aries said. **

"In a huge house full of them." Aries said. He barely made a change in the solemn air.

"**Aries did you keep the letter?" Sirius asked. Aries pulled a piece of folded parchment out of his robes. "I never leave without it." Aries admitted.**

"Still have it." Aries said pulling the letter out." Regulus smiled softly at his son.

"**Can I read it?" Sirius asked. Aries passed him the letter and Sirius read it."You've read the letter many times didn't you?" Sirius asked. Aries nodded.**

"He has it memorized." Harry said. Aries went scarlet at the cooes he got.

"**Do those sound like the words of a bad wizard?" Sirius asked. "He knew what he did was wrong, but –but" Aries sobbed. **

"Sorry but it was a lot to take in at the time." Aries said awkwardly.

"**I know it was horrible." Sirius said before thinking. How could he fix this? **

"No idea." Sirius admitted.

"**Aries did anyone tell you a war story?" Sirius asked. Aries shook his head. Sirius sat down on his brother's dusty bed. **

Leo looked particularly interested.

"**Back when I was an Auror" "What's an Auror?" Aries asked. "Wizard law enforcement." Sirius answered. "Back then, I would battle with many of Voldemort's followers. One battle it was against some of Voldemort's most loyal fighters, the Death Eaters. I fought alongside Moony and Harry's dad, when during the battle I recognized one of the Death Eaters." **

"Me." Regulus said.

"**It was Da, wasn't it?" Aries asked. "It was. I pulled your Da aside and I smacked some sense into him. I told him to see reason. He told me he was trying, but he said he needed me to promise him something." Sirius said sadly.**

Leo's eyes moistened a bit.

"**What did he make you promise?" Aries asked. "That if he died, I would look after his wife and his baby." Sirius said.**

"I'd do so in a heartbeat." Sirius said. Rgulus gave him a kind smile.

**Aries looked at him. "He really loved you and your mother. In fact I think the two of you helped him see what was wrong with being a Death Eater." Sirius said.**

The three from the future shared a brief look.

"**Do you hate him?" Sirius asked after a tense silence.**

Regulus braced himself.

"**I hate what he did." Aries said. "But not him?" Sirius asked. "Not him." Aries said.**

"Never will." Aries said. Regulus gave his son a smile. Aries pulled his currently smaller and younger father into a hug.

"**He's my Da. And you're looking after me now." Aries said. Sirius winced. "I'll be the best uncle you'll ever had. And I'll be the best dogfather for Harry." Sirius joked. Aries chuckled a bit.**

"Couldn't ask for a better one." Harry added. Teddy made a babbling noise that sounded like a dog yipping.

**Sirius put his arm around Aries. "How did you even know about this place?" Sirius asked as he led Aries out of the room. "Auntie Andy said the name." Aries said. "And you remembered what I said about flooing." Sirius deduced.**

"You are too smart for your own good." Barty joked. Aries shrugged awkwardly.

"**You and Da lived in this place?" Aries asked. "Unfortunately." Sirius sighed. "It's like a horror movie in here." Aries said with a grimaced. **

"We should do that." Leo said, interrupting himself. Harry and Aries snorted.

"**What scared you most?" Sirius asked jokingly. "The portrait and those heads of-what are those?" Aries asked with a shudder.**

Aries shuddered at the memory.

"**Those are house elves." Sirius said. "Are they all creepy like the one talking to the wall paper?" Aries asked.**

"I think he stayed inside for too long." Harry added.

"**I take it you've seen Kreacher." Sirius grimaced. "He's crazy." Aries whispered. "My mother loved him." Sirius spat. "Did your mother love that banshee portrait as well?" Aries asked. **

Everyone laughed loudly as Aries blushed.

**Sirius laughed loudly. "That was my mother." Sirius snickered. Aries looked horrified. "You're joking." He said. "Nope. That was your grandmother." Sirius said. "I take it we look like Grandfather?" Aries said. "Indeed we do." Sirius acknowledged. **

"Thankfully." Arcturus said.

"**Sirius!" Remus whispered as he wandered back up the stairs. "Hey Moony." Aries said with a wave. "He flooed over." Sirius explained. "And I'm going back to forget I ever saw this." Aries said with a weak smile.**

"Never did." Aries said. "This actually explains a lot." Harry said.

"**Touch nothing!" Sirius hissed as he walked Aries to the fireplace. "We're having a party tomorrow right?" Aries asked. "Of course! It's Harry's birthday and I plan on making up ten years of missed birthdays." Sirius said before sending Aries off. **

Sirius grinned.

"**Did he-" "He found out." Sirius said dejectedly. Remus patted his back. "We can deal with this later we got some doxys to kill." Remus said passing him a bottle of doxycide.**

"Not sure what's worse." Frank admitted.

**They managed to make a small dent in the infestation before they apparated back to Sirius' home. "Sirius! Remus! Andromeda said. "I'm sorry! I let Aries out of my sight and-" "It's fine Andy." Sirius said holding a hand up.**

"Not as fine as it should be." Bellatrix muttered.

**She looked at him worriedly. "Do you really have to go back there?" She asked in concern. **

"I know I wouldn't." Alice said with a scrunched nose.

"**As much as I would like for the place to rot into hell itself, I gotta do it for the boys." He said.**

"You did a lot for us." Leo said. Sirius smiled proudly.

"**You know they adore you right?" Andy asked warmly. Sirius smiled.**

The three shared warm smiles.

"**Harry almost reminded me of Dora when Ted would go off to work, and Leo wanted to get pranking tips." She said with a fond shake of her head.**

Everyone chuckled.

"**I brought some casserole for you all since I figured you'd be too tired to make dinner." Andromeda said. "Thanks Andy." Sirius said gratefully.**

"I'm surprised you two had the energy to lift a fork." Harry said.

**Remus stayed for dinner and the two of them told stories of the pranks they pulled at Hogwarts. Although, Remus had to cut him off when he forgot to filter himself.**

"That was always hilarious." Aries said.

**Soon Remus had to leave, and Sirius made the boys go to bed. "G'night." Sirius said. "Night, Papa." Leo yawned. "Night Padfoot." Harry and Aries said as they walked upstairs.**

"Normal family life." Aries said with a grin.

**Sirius sat alone and he put his hands over his face. "I'm sorry guys." He mumbled.**

Everyone looked confused at the book.

**He felt tired. He brooded over what happened today. **_**'House wife.' 'You're looking after me now.' 'Like Dora when Ted would go to work.'**_

**No wonder he felt tired. He was trying to fill in five pairs of shoes. Shoes he shouldn't even try to fill. **

"That's it." Leo said sadly. He put the book down and gave his dad a tight hug. "You did your best." He said. Sirius hugged him back tightly.


	2. Chapter 2

**{Hey, I'm back from my trip! So glad to be back. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando was EPIC! It was just like stepping into the movies! Anyway, here's the next chapter and I hope you like it.}**

As Sirius and Leo were tightly hugging, Aries silently drew his wand. He brandished it and his spell hit Lily Evans directly. Moody had his wand drawn at him first out of the adults present.

Aries ignored them as a small scroll sprouted out of the tip of his wand. He took the scroll and looked over it. "_Dia ár s__bháil!"_ He spat.

"What's wrong with you!?" Lily shrieked. "Moody." Aries said before tossing the scroll to him. The Head Auror read the scroll and turned his wand toward Lily. "Those're some nasty compulsions charms stuck to you." He growled.

"That's why Evans was being a total bitch? She was compelled to do so?" James asked in shock. Moody and Aries nodded seriously. "I can remove the charms." Leo offered. Lily nodded.

It took about an hour but Leo managed to break all the compulsion charms on Lily. "How many charms were placed on me?" She asked woozily. "The largest one was a blind trust compulsion towards Dumbledore. That was layered with compulsions towards loyalty." Leo said stretching his arms.

"The trickiest thing though was this ever growing obsession charm. I'm sure I got most, if not all of it, but you might want to go see a mind healer after this is all done." Leo said. Lily was pale and she shook badly, so Alice gave her a hug.

"No hard feelings?" Lily asked Liliana. "None taken." She said with a small smile. "How did you do that?" Barty asked in shock. "Leo's a curse breaker and a spell inventor." Harry explained. "Really?" Sirius asked in awe.

"Yep. Harry's on his way to be an Auror and Aries has what five jobs." Leo said. "Three." Aries corrected. "What do you do?" Regulus asked curiously. "My main job is to be a mediwizard, but I've done music gigs, and started a children's book."

"Really?" Arcturus asked in surprise. "He's working on taking over for Madam Pomfrey." Harry said. "As fascinating as this is can we continue back with the reading?" Abarax asked.

They all sat back down and Aries picked the book up.

**Chapter 2. Crash **

"What is up with the titles?" Frank asked. "The author must be a bit weird." Alice said.

**It was Harry's twelfth birthday and it was wonderful.**

Harry groaned. Teddy just pulled his hair and tried to eat it. Aries snorted before continuing to read.

**Sirius, Aries and Leo worked to bake him a cake, and he had an actual party! **

"You'll get parties every year this time around." James said solemnly. Harry blinked before grinning at his dad.

**Ron and his brothers came by with some homemade cookies their mom made, and Ron and Harry flew around as the twins messed with Aries and Leo.**

"They brought prototypes with them." Leo said. "Prototypes of what?" Shizuka asked curiously. Leo mimed zipping his lips, making everyone who wasn't there groan.

**Sirius had gotten him a wand holster,**

Harry held up his wand holster.

**a photo album**

"Always kept it." The two Black cousins intoned making Harry blush.

**and an expensive looking snitch that Sirius let him practice with.**

"Youngest seeker of the century." James said proudly.

**Remus got him an interesting book about magic of Italy.**

Liliana gave Remus a thankful look. "You'll teach me this time around won't you?" Harry asked making her beam at him.

**Aries got him a box of chocolate wands and Leo gave him a box of treacle fudge.**

"Food is awesome." Leo huffed at the looks he was getting while Aries ignored them in favor of reading.

**Velvela came by and gave him a card and a **_**Quidditch throughout the Ages**_** copy. **

"Wonderful book." All the Quidditch fans agreed.

**He had to say this was one of his best birthdays ever.**

Teddy babbled and turned his hair orange.

**The party was coming to a close. **

"That part always sucks." Sirius whined. "Preach." Leo whined.

**Only Aries and Leo were still outside with him when he saw… something pop in to the yard. **

The three from the future shared a brief look.

**It was small with large green eyes, batty ears and wore a pillow case.**

"Oh, a house elf." Frank said in surprise.

**Harry noticed Aries shrink back behind Leo for some reason.**

"What? Kreacher freaks me out." Aries defended. "He's not that bad." Regulus huffed. "You weren't the one who saw him in a ruined Grimmauld Place." Aries huffed. "Read!" Harry said.

**The creature came closer to Harry and looked up at him. "Hello- er who're you?" Harry asked. "Dobby, sir. Dobby the house-elf."**

"That answered two questions at once, actually." Leo said.

**He greeted as he bowed low enough to touch his long nose to the floor.**

Teddy squirmed in Harry's arms. "Harry it's my turn." Aries said. Harry passed Teddy to Aries and Aries placed Teddy in his lap.

"**Yous is Harry Potter." Dobby said. "Very brave and greats wizard yous is." Dobby said. Harry reddened.**

As Harry did now.

"**I'm not- really." Harry dismissed with frantic hand waving. "Humbles too." Dobby said.**

"Thankfully." Several people said casting looks to James.

"**Er- Dobby do you want to join us?" Leo asked curiously. Dobby busted into loud sobs. **

"That was surprising to say the least." Leo noted.

"**Sorry- I didn't mean to trouble you." Leo said quickly. "Trouble? Oh, young master Black is kinds." Dobby said as he blew his nose in a tattered pillowcase he wore.**

Aries was currently tilting at the waist since Teddy was pulling at the braids in his hair. "I told you to tie your hair." Leo chastised. Aries flipped his cousin off and went back to reading.

"**Dobby is there anything we can help you with?" Aries asked nervously.**

Regulus snorted at his son's fear of house elves.

"**No, kind sirs, Dobby is heres to warns yous." The house-elf said after he sniffled. "Harry Potter must not go back to Hogwarts this year." Dobby said sternly.**

"Say what!?" James asked in shock. Dorea was mimicking a fish out of water, as her husband and future daughter in law sent worried looks to Harry.

"**What!?" They all asked in shock. "Terrible dangers this year. Harry Potter must stay safe." Dobby said.**

"Good luck with that." The three chorused much to the angst of their parents and extended family present.

"**Dobby what're you talking about?" Leo asked worriedly. "Mustn't say. Mustn't say." Dobby said while shaking his head.**

"Agh!" Sirius groaned at the suspence.

"**Yous needs to stays here." Dobby said before vanishing with a loud pop.**

"Can I just ship you boys somewhere else?" Sirius asked.

"**Well that's weird." Leo said loudly.**

"That was nothing." Harry muttered.

**Harry nodded and Aries shuddered. He never said why though.**

"Now I know." Harry said.

**They decided to tell Sirius and Remus about it though. "Did he say what Harry needs to be safe from?" Remus asked. "No he said he mustn't tell." Leo supplied. Sirius grimaced. **

"You really didn't like this." Leo said in remembrance.

"**He could be trying to prank you." He said as if he was trying to convince himself.**

"Please tell me I'm right." Sirius begged. "I must not tell lies." Harry said monotonously, much to the ferocious hate in Aries and Leo's eyes for some reason.

"**Maybe. Someone could just have sent him to mess with you Harr." Aries said. "Seems like the most likely reason." Remus added. **

Remus smacked himself.

**Eventually they dropped the whole issue and carried on with their summer. One morning, Sirius got a letter from Ron's parents asking if the boys could sleep over before the summer ended.**

"Ah the conflict." Remus noted.

**Sirius was biting his lip hard. "Do you boys want to go?" Sirius asked. Harry shared a look with Aries and Leo. "Just for a little while." Aries said. **

"That was a really tough thing to say." Aries said. Sirius went pink before huffing.

**Sirius smiled at them and helped them pack. The day they were to floo over Sirius made a huge breakfast for them. "Chocolate chip pancakes!" Leo cheered as he shoveled the food. **

Leo had a hungry look on his face that was identical to his father's.

"**You sure like to cook Uncle Siri." Aries said with a grin. Sirius smiled brightly at them. "It's a good pass time, and I have a lot of free time now that I'm free." **

"Once he even made a full five course meal." Leo said. "Damn!" A lot of people hissed.

"**I thought you had all that paper work to do?" Harry asked thinking back to the stacks he'd seen on Sirius' desk. **

Every rich pureblood family head grimaced.

"**Those I can do easily. Besides I was going to start working on those while you're at Hogwarts." Sirius said. Harry couldn't stop grinning.**

Sirius was too.

**Living with Sirius was amazing.**

"I question that statement." Remus said. "I second that." James said.

**They flooed over after giving Sirius a tight hug. "I'll come by when you're going to Diagon Alley. And have fun." Sirius added before they flooed over. **

"You make an excellent dad." Charlus said warmly causing Sirius to grin.

**The Weasley home, the Burrow was unlike anything Harry had ever seen. It was cluttered and angled in ways that Harry was sure could only be done by magic.**

"It is." Septimus said. "I think they had to expand to house such a huge family." Aries said interrupting himself.

**They stepped out of the fireplace when the twins scooped Aries and Leo into tight hugs.**

Aries and Leo shared a smirk.

"**Harry!" Ron greeted. Harry grinned widely at him.**

"Best mate in the whole world." Harry said. Septimus smiled at him.

**Soon Mrs. Weasley came in. She was short and plump woman and she looked as angry as her red hair.**

"Oh boy." Septimus sighed.

**She was glaring up at her sons and swelled like a bullfrog in her fury. "Where have you three been?" She asked quietly. **

"She's really mad now." Septimus said.

"**Morning." George said with a nervous smile. **

Septimus silently counted down from three.

"**Three beds empty! And you two dragged Ron with you in that blasted car!" She bellowed. "I never had this much trouble with Percy!"**

A lot of people winced.

**Harry winced at that. "Perfect Percy." Fred muttered. "You two could do with taking a leaf from your brother's book!" She screamed.**

"No child likes being compared." Sirius said solemnly. "True." Aries said with a frown.

**Harry saw Aries and Leo slink back behind him. Aries' eyes kept shifting over to the twins. **

"They were very depressed." Aries said when he saw their questioning looks.

**After Mrs. Weasley finished scolding her sons she turned to face the three of them. Harry didn't blame Aries and Leo for jumping when she did.**

No one blamed them.

"**Come in you boys must be famished." She said kindly before leading them to a large table. **

"What. The actual. Fuck?" Sirius asked in shock. "That's Molly for you." Septimus shrugged.

"**Oh no, we're fine." Leo said politely through his shock. "Nonsense, eat up! You boys could use a good and proper meal." She said before tipping their plates with half a dozen sausages each.**

"Really?" Regulus asked. "And that's one serving." The three complained.

**Leo looked like he wanted to argue that Sirius gave them very good meals along with food he lets them snack on. They gave up trying to stop her at their friends' looks.**

"She'll stuff you like a turkey." Leo whined.

**Harry was stuffed before she gave him a second helping. Even Aries and Leo looked overly stuffed during their third helping.**

"I wound up throwing up after that." Aries said, much to the distress of Andromeda.

**They thankfully could stop when Mr. Weasley came in. He was a tall red head who was balding, and was fixing his glasses. "Mundungus Fletcher had me when my back was turned!"**

Septimus had a strained smile. His son sounded stressed.

**Harry heard him as he woke up from his food daze. "Arthur these are Aries, Leo and Harry." Mrs. Weasley said kindly. "Who?" He asked. **

"The one time." Harry said seriously. Leo barked a laugh at his distress.

"**My word you're Harry Potter." He said in shock when he spotted Harry's scar. "These are Aries and Leo Black, we grew up together." Harry explained with a smile. "Really? All three of you were raised by muggles?" He asked. They nodded. "Fascinating." Mr. Weasley breathed.**

"He's great." Harry said with a smile.

**They ate sparingly under Mrs. Weasley's gaze and spent most of the time talking.**

"It was weird having to explain what a vacuum was." Aries said.

"**So Harry, can you tell me the purpose of a rubber duck?" Mr. Weasley asked.**

Everyone raised by muggles snorted back giggles at the question. Leo conjured one and passed it to Teddy who decided to gum it after matching his hair color to the duck.

**Harry opened his mouth to answer when Ron's sister came down in her bathrobe. She looked at Harry, turned scarlet and ran back up wordlessly.**

"Shy much?" Liliana asked. "Not for long." Harry said as he leaned his head back.

"**Don't worry Harr, you're not that repulsive." Leo joked causing everyone except Mrs. Weasley to laugh. **

"You'd think living with Fabian and Gideon would give her a funny bone." James said exasperatedly.

"**It's nothing dear, Ginny's just shy." Mrs. Weasley said before going upstairs. **

Many girls nodded.

"**It's weird though." Ron told Harry. "Normally she never shuts up about you." **

"Really?" Regulus asked.

"**Really?" Aries asked curiously. **

Regulus shared a look with his son briefly.

"**Oh yeah. She used to dream about marrying Harry." Fred added with a snort. "She'll be disappointed to learn that Harry is just a regular bloke then." Leo added.**

Harry grumbled something, but Remus was sure he heard him say 'Not likely.'

"**Hopefully you can be friends. I'm sure she'll grow out of her shyness." Mr. Weasley added. "Probably, Harry's a great friend." Ron added before snagging food off of Aries' plate. **

"True." Leo said.

**They left it at that and went back to chatting.**

"I was stuck trying to explain what a stamp was." Leo chuckled.

**Soon Ginny and Mrs. Weasley came down and joined them. "Are you starting Hogwarts this year?" Harry asked trying to strike up a conversation. Ginny nodded and stuck her elbow in the butter dish.**

"Oh, she has it bad." Many teenagers whistled.

"**Well I'm off to bed." George said with a yawn. "Oh no you three don't." Mrs. Weasley said to the twins and Ron. "Since you three went on a joyride in that blasted car, you lot get to de-gnome the yard." She said.**

Many snorted.

"**Now let's see what Lockhart has to say on the subject." Mrs. Weasley said as she pulled a large book off of a nearby shelf.**

The three from the future groan. "That moron wrote a book?" Remus groaned. "You know him?" Liliana asked in confusion. "I have to tutor him in History of Magic." The werewolf howled. "I got him for Transfiguration tutoring." James groaned.

"You tutored him?" Harry asked appalled. "I had to for detention." James said. "Professor Minnie, that's just plain cruel." Leo whined. "I have to tutor him for Defense." Sirius said with a shudder.

"What's up?" Shizuka asked. "Remember that stalker we mentioned?" Remus asked. "It's Lockhart." James said bitterly.

"EWWW!" Leo shrieked. "WHY!?" Aries whined as he clapped a hand over his eyes. "He wanted to try and be popular like Sirius so he… studied him." James said awkwardly. "Not now though." Remus growled feral.

"You okay Moony?" Aries asked. "He's rather protective of us." James said. "Pack mentality."

Aries nodded before going back to reading.

**On the cover was a good looking wizard with wavy blonde hair and a smile that seemed to show every one of his white teeth. **

"Moony threatened to knock his teeth out and scalp him." James said. Remus was currently wearing a feral smile. "Note to self: Never anger Moony." Leo said with a nervous chuckle. "Velvela's worse though." Aries said. Harry and Leo nodded.

"**Mum, we know how to de-gnome a yard." George said.**

"Grab and throw." Harry and Leo choired.

"**Mum fancies him." Fred whispered. "Oh, go and start de-gnoming." She said with pink cheeks.**

"He is the most vain person on the planet." Harry groaned.

**Leo and Aries shared a mimed gag no one noticed.**

As they did now.

"**You boys can go up and rest if you want." She said kindly to them. "I've never seen a de-gnoming before. Can I help?" Harry asked. Leo joined in and Aries opted to go up and sleep.**

"Actually I went to puke."

"**Muggles have lawn gnomes too." Harry told Ron. "Oh, those fat, little father Christmases with the fishing rods? Those aren't gnomes." Ron rummaged through an untrimmed bush before pulling something up. "This is a gnome." Ron said holding a small potato headed creature with leathery skin and large feet.**

"Ick." Many whined. Xenophilius looked fascinated.

**Ron grabbed the gnome by the ankles, and began to spin his arm like a windmill. Then the gnome went flying off. **

"Great exercise." Leo said.

**Harry tried to just drop them over the wall but it bit him, and he shook the thing off.**

"Excellent! Gnome saliva is enormously beneficial! You have to have been gifted by the Gernumblies!" Xenophilius said excitedly. Many people casted weird looks at him.

"Maybe, strange things kept happening from that point and on." Harry said. "Oh, yeah they did." Leo said in realization. "Perhaps it affected your luck?" Aries asked curiously. Now their families looked at them strangely.

**Soon it became a contest to see who could toss the gnomes the farthest. Leo won which got him to be carried off by the twins for some "planned chaos" as Percy calls it. **

"I was a test dummy." Leo said with a shrug.

**Aries came down running and Harry couldn't stop laughing. He had hidden the twins' clothes with some old frilly dresses he found in the attic. **

Harry held nothing back now.

**Ron snorted loudly at the moth eaten lace sundresses the twins wore. Leo had pink hair and was in a polka dot dress the twins snagged from Ginny's room. **

"He actually looked good in it." Aries said. Leo took Teddy out of Aries' lap and kicked his cousin in the shins.

**Even at dinner when they were all normally dressed, they were still giggling. Things were lively even as they went to sleep. There wasn't much room but Harry and the cousins were used to sharing. **

"Although, they were surprised to have you two snuggling them." Harry said.

**Harry bunked with Ron, and Aries bunked with the twins. Leo had to share with Ginny, but he looked fine with it. **

"I took a pillow and the floor." Leo said.

**The next few days were lively with the twins and the cousins having prank wars, and talking with Mr. Weasley about magical and muggle things. **

Septimus smiled.

**One morning Aries left early. He went to go walk around the neighborhood. When he came back that evening he was eager to go out again. Leo and Harry pulled him aside to ask him what was wrong. "I just made a friend here." Was all he would say. **

Aries smiled widely.

**Leo and Harry just shrugged it off. **

"About time you made some more friends!" Alice giggled.

**The only one who seemed upset with his regular outings was Mrs. Weasley.**

"Knew that." Aries said.

**Harry heard her muttering about how Aries should be spending time here at the Burrow.**

Most people shrugged. He was a guest at her house after all.

**The day they were supposed to go to Diagon Alley they all got their lists of school books during breakfast. Mr. Weasley was at the table and Mrs. Weasley was in the kitchen.**

"That's where you'll usually find them." Leo said. Septimus nodded.

**Aries was the first to open his. "Oh for the love of- Really?" He asked dropping a piece of toast that was between his teeth.**

"Uh-oh." Nymphadora said. Teddy babbled and his hair turned navy blue.

**Harry opened his letter and read it. It was King's Cross station again, but the book list was different. **

**SECOND-YEAR STUDENTS WILL REQUIRE:**

**The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2**

**by Miranda Goshawk**

**Break with a Banshee by Gilderoy Lockhart **

"What?" Remus asked in shock.

**Gadding with Ghouls by Gilderoy Lockhart **

"Wait a second Lockhart book?" Sirius asked curiously.

**Holidays with Hags by Gilderoy Lockhart**

"Why a third?" James asked.

**Travels with Trolls by Gilderoy Lockhart **

"How many books did this idiot write?" Regulus asked.

**Voyages with Vampires by Gilderoy Lockhart **

"There's more!?" Barty asked in shock.

**Wanderings with Werewolves by Gilderoy Lockhart **

"What the hell?" Lucius asked in shock.

**Year with the Yeti by Gilderoy Lockhart**

"Seriously!?" Frank asked.

**Leo peered over at the twins' list. "You guys too?" He asked. "Bet the new Defense teacher is a fan girl." Fred said.**

"If only." Harry moaned.

"**Just what we need." Aries mumbled. **

"I had no idea how much worse it was." Aries amended gravely.

"**Lockhart's books are expensive…" George said with a quick look at his parents. "We'll manage." Mr. Weasley said nervously.**

Septimus had a nervous look on his face.

"**But Ginny has to get her school supplies too, plus a set of Lockhart books." Fred said uneasily quiet. **

Several pparents winced. They didn't have trouble making ends meet.

**Percy came down with a "Morning all" when a molted grey feather duster zoomed onto the table. "IT'S ALIVE!" Leo shrieked as he jumped into Fred's arms.**

"Wennie." Harry coughed. Leo smacked his head making Teddy giggle.

"**Errol!" Ron sighed.**

"That owl has to be ancient by then." Septimus said.

"**Is that your family's owl?" Aries asked. "Yeah, Percy got Hermes for getting good test scores." Ron said. "Ah." Aries said.**

Aries shrugged.

**Fred plopped Leo onto Harry when Percy hurried back upstairs.**

"You were heavy." "And you were bony." "Shut up and listen."

"**What's wrong with him?" Ron asked. "Don't know. He got twelve O.W.L.s and hasn't gloated once." Fred said suspiciously.**

"Twelve!?" Many asked in shock. The two foreign witches looked confused.

"**Owls?" Leo asked with a tilted head. "Ordinary Wizard Levels." George explained. **

"Oh." Liliana said. "We have a different grading system in Japan." Shizuka said. "It's different in Italy too." Liliana added.

"**Bill got twelve too. If were not careful we'll have another Head Boy in the family. I'm not sure if I could stand the shame." He said.**

Sirius and Remus casted looks at James. "Leave me be." The stag animagus said.

"**Nothing wrong with having another Head Boy in the family." Mrs. Weasley chided before walking off back to the kitchen. **

"If she had her way, all her sons would've gotten Head Boy badges and worked at the Ministry." Leo said.

"And Ginny would've been a house wife too." Aries amended. Septimus frowned. "She should just let them do what they want." Charlus said.

Aries went back to reading before this conversation could go any further.

"**Five sets of Lockhart's books, and Ginny needs robes and everything." Fred said seriously.**

Septimus frowned and closed his eyes. _Children shouldn't have to worry about those things. _He thought.

**Harry said nothing. He shared awkward looks with Leo and Aries. What could they say? They had a ton of riches in their trust vaults alone.**

"Life isn't fair." Aries and Leo chorused.

"**Couldn't you buy one set and duplicate them?" Aries asked.**

"No." Everyone said sadly.

**Fred dismissed that with a wave of his hand. "Can't. Every published book is heavily laced with anti-duplication charms." He said.**

"The one time it doesn't help to be useful." Septimus grumbled.

**Aries bit his lip. "Maybe we could share one set." George said motioning to his twin.**

"**Maybe. Four sets are better than five." Ron muttered. **

"Do all of them know about the finances?" Septimus asked nervously. The three from the future shared a look. "The boys did. I don't think Ginny knew until a few years later." Aries said.

**Harry sent a look to Aries. It was like when they lived with the Dursleys. **

"Speaking of, do we get to chuck them to Azkaban?" James asked viciously. "You'll find out soon, I think." Harry answered.

"**Can we help?" Leo asked with a concerned look. **

Shizuka sent a smile towards her son.

"**Nah, we'll be fine." Fred said ruffling his hair.**

The Marauders shared a look.

**Harry decided to drop the subject. There was a knock at the door and Mrs. Weasley, Sirius and Remus in. "Papa!" Leo cheered before tackling him with a hug.**

"He's a hugger." Harry and Aries warned.

**Sirius was knocked to the floor and Remus was too busy laughing to help him up immediately. **

"Oh, Moony you're a true friend." Sirius said. "Any time Pads." Remus said with a thumbs up.

"**Still recovering." Sirius wheezed briefly. "Sorry." Leo said sheepishly.**

"He's stronger than he looks." Harry said while jerking his thumb at the half-Japanese wizard.

"_**Kamahen, kamahen." **_**Sirius said dismissively. "You said you'd teach me a bit of Japanese." Leo said in a huff. "I'm not fluent but I picked up on a couple things from Shizuka." Sirius said.**

Shizuka gave Sirius a shrewd look that made him blush. "Moony said Dad was the same with you." Harry said to Liliana.

"**Everyone ready to floo?" Mrs. Weasley asked. They all got in a line to floo over. "I'm going to side-along apparate Leo there. Aries, Harry you want to come along?" Sirius asked. "Oh, they'll be fine Sirius." Mrs. Weasley huffed.**

"And so it begins." Leo groaned. No one decided to clarify what 'it' was so Aries went back to reading.

**Sirius' eye twitched and his expression became fixed but he kept his mouth shut thanks to Remus. "Of course Mrs. Weasley." Remus said. **

"Life saver." Harry cheered.

"**Mr. Black-" **

"Yes?" Sirius, Regulus, Arcturus and Leo asked at once.

"**Call me Sirius, Mr. Weasley." Sirius said.**

"Ah." The Black men replied.

"**Then please call me Arthur." Mr. Weasley said extending his hand. Sirius shook it. "Can we speak for a moment?" They walked to a corner to talk privately.**

"Never found out what it was about though." Leo huffed.

"**Everyone ready?" Mrs. Weasley said loudly.**

Leo rolled his eyes.

**Percy and the twins were the first ones to floo over. When it was Harry's turn he got a mouthful of hot ash.**

"Oh, no." His parents groaned.

"**D-HACK! Urgh-n Alley!" He coughed and the floo powder dropped.**

"I hate Floo travelling." Harry said. "Same." Leo replied. "I don't like it either." Aries said interrupting himself.

**Harry felt the dreaded spinning of floo travel as he tumbled and snapped his glasses on the cold stone floor. **

"Every time I floo I break these." James said as he shifted his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

**He slowly got up with the feeling that he'll bruise and looked around. It was dark with many twisted and disturbing items strewn about.**

Harry shuddered.

**Harry was definitely NOT in Diagon Alley. **

Aries closed the book and turned to Harry. "No shit!" He said before tossing the book at him. Harry caught it. "Show off!" Leo booed. Teddy giggled and clapped as his hair went magenta. Leo cuddled him.


	3. Chapter 3

**{Okay, first of all, sorry it took so long o update. And as a heads up, I will start bashing more characters again soon, so if you don't like it, then please don't continue. Other than that I hope you enjoy the newest chapter!- CM}**

Harry took the book from Aries and opened it to the next chapter.

**Chapter 3. Shop 'till you drop**

"Who wrote these titles?" Frank asked.

**Aries was going to kill Harry for botching the floo. **

"I still never killed you for that!" Aries shouted.

**They had all flooed to Diagon Alley but there was no sign of Harry.**

Harry shuddered at the memory.

**Leo's eyes glowed again and he wandered around the Alley to a dark alley. There they saw Hagrid and Harry coming out of the dark alley.**

Sirius was hoping it was where he thought it was.

"**Where'd you find him Hagrid?" Sirius asked as he checked over Harry. "Knockturn Alley." Hagrid said with a grimace.**

Sirius pulled a face too.

"**Nice." The twins chorused. "Mum never lets us anywhere near there." Fred said. "Good thin' too." Hagrid said grimly.**

"It is rather grim." Andromeda said snuggling her daughter who babbled towards Teddy. Teddy had violet colored wolf ears on his head that twitched and swivled.

"**Why were you in there any way Hagrid?" Aries asked. "Flesh eatin' slug repellent." Hagrid said holding a large bottle.**

"Good thing too." Aries said.

"**Sirius!" Harry whined. **

Eyes immediately turned to the dog animagus.

**Aries turned to see Uncle Sirius wiping Harry's face with the sleeve of his robe. **

"You do know you don't have to be a mother right?" Barty asked. Sirius blushed a bit.

"**What on earth happened to your glasses?" Sirius asked. "They broke." Harry said. **

"Smart arse." Leo snorted.

"**Smart arse." Uncle Sirius muttered before pulling his wand out.**

Leo grinned widely.

"**Oculus repairo." Sirius said and Harry's glasses fixed themselves with a quick **_**whirr. **_

"I had to use that so many times." James muttered as he gestured with his glasses.

"**Wicked." The twins said. Soon the rest of the Weasleys came to join them.**

Aries and Leo shared a look.

"**Harry, you ok?" Ron asked. "Just a wrong turn." Harry said.**

"Hippogriff shit." Sirius snorted.

"**Are you sure you're alright dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked worriedly. "I'm fine." Harry said. "Positive?" She asked. "Yes, Sirius checked." Harry said. **

Leo and Shizuka nodded firmly.

**She gave a grudging nod to Uncle Sirius, and Aries could tell that Uncle Sirius was annoyed. **

Leo whistled as if he had something to hide.

"**Leo?" George asked. They all turned to see Leo staring at open air with blank eyes that glowed silver. **

"I don't remember that." Leo said in surprise.

"**Leo?" Sirius asked in a sudden burst of panic. Leo whispered something that terrified Uncle Sirius briefly.**

"What did I say?" Leo asked. "_YOU'LL FIND OUT LATER." _A voice suddenly said from nowhere. Moody was the first to draw his wand. "Oh we didn't mention the situation to them." Harry said suddenly.

"What situation?" Charlus asked. "Well, we can only stay for this book." Leo said sadly. "You have to leave? So soon?" Shizuka asked sadly. "Yeah." Aries said with a sad look. "You see, we didn't bring you here. A third party from an even more distant future did." Leo explained.

"Seriously?" James asked sadly. "Yeah. They'll stay with you throughout the last books." Harry explained. "You can't stay any longer?" Regulus asked. "No, we're on borrowed time." Aries said sadly. "But you just got here." Liliana protested. "Yeah, but when you guys are done reading, we can be a real family again." Leo said with a distant smile.

It took people a few minutes to accept it, but they eventually did, and Harry went back to reading.

**Then Leo blinked and his eyes were back to normal. "Papa?" Leo asked with his trade mark head tilt.**

"I blame you for that." Aries said pointing towards his teenaged uncle.

"**Spaced off a bit." Sirius said with a smile. Aries stared at them. He knew that smile was the same as when Leo wanted to hide something.**

"Mate, you are a natural born lie detector." Harry joked. Aries smirked, but a grim look wouldn't leave his dark eyes.

**Suddenly Aries was being noogied by one of the twins. **

Aries and Leo shared a smirk.

**Soon the other twin was chasing Leo but Leo managed to sneak around him and pants him. **

"My son's a prankster!" Sirius cheered as several people laughed hard.

**George let Aries go as he was laughing at Fred's knickers , so Aries pantsed him too before running towards Leo and giving him a high five.**

They gave a casual high five.

"**That's my boys!" Uncle Sirius yelled as Moony chuckled.**

Both of the two Marauders mentioned laughed.

**Mrs. Weasley was the only one who scolded them. "Let them be Molly, it's about time the boys had some competition." Mr. Weasley said kindly. "They should know better." Mrs. Weasley huffed.**

"Does she have no sense of humor?" Sirius grumbled.

**Uncle Sirius snorted. "Save it for Hogwarts boys, we got stuff to buy."**

"Ugh!" Sirius whined as he covered his eyes.

"**Fine." Leo whined.**

"You still hate shopping for necessary things." Aries pointed out.

**They were in the Apothecary when they came across to familiar faces. "Vela!" Leo cheered and ran up to hug her. **

Leo smiled and Aries smirked.

**Aries walked over to his new friend. She had long straggly blonde hair and perturbed grey eyes that made her look like she was always surprised. "Hiya Luna." Aries greeted with a smile. "Hi Mars." She greeted.**

"Mars?" Regulus asked. Aries shrugged. "I sometimes call her Moon." Aries explained.

**Aries chuckled. "How's your day going?" Aries asked. "Fine. Daddy just finished buying my school supplies." Luna said airily. "I'm here with my Uncle and some family friends, do you want to meet them?" Aries asked. "Sure, just let me go get Daddy." Luna said before skipping off.**

"She sounds sweet." Dorea said. "She's a fantastic witch." Aries grinned.

"**So that's your new friend." Harry grinned. "She's great." Aries said. **

Aries nodded at his own statement.

"**Hey Ells, are these your friends?" A woman asked. She had the same ash blonde hair as Velvela. Standing next to her was a tall man who resembled Velvela, down to the dark blue eyes. "Oh, guys this is my Mum and Dad." Velvela greeted.**

Aries smirked again and Leo bounced Teddy on his knee.

"**This is my Papa." Leo greeted. "Sirius Black." Uncle Sirius greeted with an extended hand. "Zeff Howle. This is my wife Daciana." Mr. Howle greeted. **

"Nice names." Alice said kindly.

**Soon Luna came back with her dad. He was an eccentric looking wizard with his pale blonde hair resembling candyfloss and a slightly crossed eyes.**

Everyone stared at a shocked Xenophilius Lovegood. "Me?" He asked airily.

"**Hello Mr. Lovegood." Aries greeted.**

Xenophilius grinned at the prospect of having a little girl.

"**Ah, your my little Luna's friend, Aries." Mr. Lovegood said with a dazed smile. "Yes sir." Aries said. "Hello. I'm Aries' uncle, Sirius Black." Uncle Sirius greeted. **

"Perhaps we could set up play dates this time around." Shizuka offered.

**Mr. Lovegood smiled at them. "Ah, I believe I have heard of your trial. Tell me, does the Ministry truly have an army of Heliopaths?" Mr. Lovegood asked airily. **

Sirius' smile faltered. Xenophilius on the other hand looked quite interested in learning about the Heliopaths.

**Uncle Sirius looked stumped and shocked. "I think Uncle was too sick from the dementors to search for them Mr. Lovegood." Aries piped in. "Ah, such a pity." The eccentric wizard sighed.**

He sighed sadly now too.

"**We have to go now, sorry." Remus said cordially. "See you at Hogwarts Luna." Aries said with a wave good bye before they went their separate ways.**

"She's one of my best friends." Aries said with a firm nod.

"**Well that was-" Remus started. "Weird." Sirius finished. "Luna's a great friend. Her dad's just different." Aries huffed. **

Aries shifted a look to his teenaged father.

**Uncle Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment before chortling. "Almost reminds me of your mother." He said. "Really?" Moony asked. "When I talked to her briefly she heard me… talking bad about my mother and she told me 'your breathe nourishes the soul and those harsh words can do grave damage.' Shortly after my brother comes by and takes her by the hand." **

Regulus blushed regally, and Sirius smirked at his brother calling him 'a widdle ladies man.'

**Aries looked thoughtful. He supposes he could wait to ask him.**

"About what?" Sirius asked. "My Ma." Aries said fiddling with a thin braid. Sirius winced.

**They walked down the cobble stone street to Flourish and Blott's. In the window was a sign. GILDEROY LOCKHART will be signing copies of his autobiography MAGICAL ME today 12:30 P.m. to 4:30 P.m.**

Sirius shuddered, James patted his shoulder as Remus growled ferally. Teddy decided to try and copy Remus, but his growls were more like a puppy wanting to play than anything threatening.

**Uncle Sirius grimaced and shuddered and Aries swore he heard Moony growl.**

"Now I know why." Aries said with a grimace.

"**Am I the only one not looking forward to this?" Velvela asked. "No." Sirius grumbled.**

James pulled a terrified looking Sirius into a brotherly hug, as Remus' eyes sparked gold. "Moony, it's only a book." James reminded, and Remus slightly relaxed.

"**I refuse to believe he's a good author if he looks like he came off of a makeup magazine." Mr. Howle said firmly. **

"He wears it too." Harry interrupted. "How do you know that?" Liliana asked curiously. _"NO SPOILERS!"_ The mystery voice said before Harry went back to reading.

**They walked in and it was packed of mostly women around Mrs. Weasley's age.**

Several people wrinkled their noses.

**Aries swore he saw her primp her hair in the line.**

"She did." Harry said. "I think she blushed too." Leo added.

**A tired wizard held open the door saying "Come in ladies… Don't push and mind the books." **

**As they worked up the line they snagged their other required books.**

"It was PACKED." Leo whined.

**Slowly, Gilderoy Lockhart came into view. He sat down at a large table surrounded by large pictures of himself that winked and flashed their dazzling teeth to the crowd.**

"Really?" Several adults asked. "He did that a lot to Sirius." James said.

**Aries was getting a terrible headache from all the high strung witches in the store.**

"I forgot you had issues with that." Regulus muttered. Aries shrugged.

**The real Lockhart wore forget-me-not blue robes that bizarrely matched his eyes, and his pointed hat was set at a jaunty angle.**

"He sounds gay." Frank said aloud. "I think he loves himself too much to swing that way." Aries said.

"**Ugh." Uncle Sirius uttered.**

"I've heard him scream." James remembered. "And I threatened to scalp Lockahrt." Remus growled. "Do I want to know?" Leo asked with a sick look. "Your dad found Lockhart watching him sleep outside." James explained awkwardly.

"Do I need to fend off creeps for you?" Shizuka asked sarcastically. Sirius didn't dignify that with an answer.

**Aries thought that Lockhart was trying too hard. Uncle Sirius managed to turn heads, but Uncle Sirius had this casual elegance to him. Lockhart was all flashy and gaudy. **

"Or just really gay." Frank said. "Nah, that's Dumbledumb." Leo noted.

**Soon this short and angry photographer stepped on Ron's foot muttering about the Daily Prophet. **

Septimus frowned.

"**Who cares." Ron muttered as he bent down to check his foot.**

"Shallow people with too much free time?" Lucius drawled.

**Aries had a sinking feeling at the joy Lockhart felt when he saw Harry. **

Harry gave Aries a rude one handed gesture.

"**Harry Potter." Lockhart said causing everyone else to turn and look at Harry.**

"This time around, please don't make me internationally famous." Harry begged his parents. James frowned slightly and Liliana nodded.

**Soon Lockhart leapt down and pulled Harry back with him.**

"Oi!" James snapped. "Hands off my _bambino_!" Liliana said angrily.

**Leo told him to unhand his god brother.**

"I tried." Leo mumbled as if he was mourning.

**Soon he had Harry clamped to his side as he made Harry take photos with him. Aries glared icily at the flashy jerk. **

"It was rather effective on any nearby women." Leo noted.

**"Ladies and gentlemen," Lockhart said loudly, waving for them to be quiet.**

"Piss off." Sirius snarled.

**"What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!**

"A brain?" Regulus asked bitingly.

**Soon, Lockhart made some grand gestures to show that he was going to speak. "When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography"**

"He had to buy supplies you ponce." Frank said in annoyance.

"**No he didn't." Aries snarled.**

"And I never will." Harry said seriously.

" **-which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge-" The crowd applauded again. **

"It was signed too." Harry mentioned.

**Aries could feel the rest of his family slowly grow irritated.**

It was worse now actually.

**"He had no idea," Lockhart continued, giving Harry a little shake that made his glasses slip to the end of his nose,**

James unconsciously slid his glasses up his nose as he glared at the book.

**"that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. **

"NOOOO!" The Marauders wailed. "I pity you boys." Augusta said.

**Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"**

"I would sooner send you home and tutor you myself." Sirius swore.

"**I will boycott his class if this is how he treats Harry." Aries swore as the crowd cheered.**

Aries was busy picking at his nails.

**Harry clambered back with the entire works of Gilderoy Lockhart in his arms.**

"They went numb." Harry piped in.

**Harry slid them into Ginny's cauldron saying that he'll buy his own set as Uncle Sirius marched angrily towards Lockhart.**

"I will tear the flashy ponce a new one." Sirius growled.

**Moony was lividly by Uncle Sirius's side and Aries went after them.**

"I didn't need either of them being sent to Azkaban." Aries said making several people snort.

"**What's the big idea, Lockhart!?" Uncle Sirius snarled. "Ah, can I help you?" Lockhart asked charmingly.**

"Oh, his ass is grass now." James said evilly as he rubbed his hands together.

"**Yes, you can start by not taking advantage of my godson's fame!" Uncle Sirius shouted. **

"Thank you, Paddy!" Harry cheered.

**Aries smirked when Lockhart panicked.**

"You are a sadist." Leo deadpanned. "No, I am a Black." Aries corrected.

"**Harry's your godson?" Lockhart asked after a brief swallow. **

"Since when were you on first name basis?" Shizuka asked sternly.

"**Yes. No if I find out-" "Sirius, how are you cousin?" A clipped voice called.**

"Oh, I was so close too!" Sirius whined like a disappointed dog.

"**Narcissa, how lovely to see you again." Uncle Sirius said with a toneless smile.**

"Cissy, you have some bad sense of timing." Bellatrix cackled.

**Aries turned to see a pretty blonde woman looking at them with an expressionless face that masked a sense of disgust. Aries was shocked to see that she looked quite a bit like Aunt Andy. **

"I look more like Bellatrix." Andromeda said.

"**I see you are as lively as ever." She said with an icy look.**

"You always have to make a scene." She sighed.

**Lockhart looked relieved and gave Narcissa a flashing smile. **

Lucius glared at the book and pulled Narcissa closer towards his side.

"**Hello Milady, would you care for a signed copy of Mag-" She didn't even look at him when she coldly replied "No. I just wanted to chat with my cousin. Now if you'll excuse me, my son and husband are waiting for me." **

"Oh, nice Aunt Cissa." Leo whistled.

**She left with a swish of her long skirt and a click of a high heel. **

Lucius rolled his eyes.

**She looked down at Aries with an imploring look. Aries nodded briefly as she walked away towards Draco Malfoy and a man that looked like a very sophisticated Mr. Lovegood. **

"You two do look very similar." Alice noted. "I think it gets explained in a later book." Harry said.

**Aries looked up and tugged at Uncle Sirius's sleeve. A fight had broken out between Mr. Weasley and Malfoy's dad.**

Abarax and Septimus shared challenging looks.

**Uncle Sirius glared at Lockhart. "Let's go, Aries." He said before marching back. **

"Gladly." Aries intoned.

**Aries swore though that Moony snarled like an angry wolf at Lockhart before walking back. **

"Most likely." James and Sirius chorused.

**Mr. Weasley had a cut lip and Mr. Malfoy had taken a book of toadstools to the eye as the whole family sauntered out of the store. **

Lucius frowned and Narcissa held his hand.

**Aries snuck outside. He felt like he was going to be sick from all of those emotions. Was there any way to make them stop?**

"Is there a way?" Regulus asked. "You'll find out later." Aries said with a warm smile.

**He slid down a cool brick wall and took deep breathes. Those witches and their giddiness made his head spin, and the anger he felt burned his skin. And the excitement Lockhart exuded when he wanted to use the fight to make himself more famous sent a sickeningly sweet taste to his throat. Deep breathes. **

"I never seem to catch a break." Aries sighed. "Harry's worse." Leo said. "This was one of your worst years though, Lee." Harry retorted.

**Aries barely noticed the sound of clicky heels, and saw an emerald green skirt on the ground. He looked up and saw that it was Mrs. Malfoy.**

Everyone looked curiously between the two.

"**Hello." She said. "Hi." Aries said woozily, before clamping a hand over his mouth to make sure Mrs. Weasley's three serving breakfast plus half a dozen bacon sandwiches stayed in his stomach. **

"That's way too much food for a single meal." Andromeda said with a frown. "That's Molly for you." Septimus said. "She did have six growing boys to feed." Alice said. "But even that stuffed them plenty." Leo added.

"**Are you feeling alright?" She asked worriedly. Aries nodded. "I'm Narcissa Malfoy.**

She smiled. She liked the way that name ringed in her ears.

**You must be Regulus's son." She said.**

"What gave it away?" Aries asked jokingly.

**Aries nodded, still not trusting the bile to stay down. "Not good with crowds?" She asked. Aries nodded. Soon there was a call of "Narcissa!" "I have to go now, but feel free to write." She said before turning away.**

"That's very kind of you." Dorea said with a smile.

**Aries leaned his head against the cool wall and let his lunch settle back down. **

Several people grimaced.

**Soon everyone came out and he told them that he needed to get away from the crowd. Shortly after that, they all finished their shopping. **

_Finally,_ several occupants thought.

"**So back to the burrow then?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "Can I go home? I'm not feeling well." Aries said uneasily.**

"You never told us about that." Leo said.

**Uncle Sirius instantly looked worried. "What's wrong?" He asked worriedly, as he placed his hands on Aries' shoulders. **

"Many things." Aries joked.

"**Can I go home?" Aries asked again. "Of course." Uncle Sirius said soothingly. "Ree?" Leo asked with a sad look. "See you later." Aries said.**

"I was worried sick, you jerk." Leo grumbled.

**Uncle Sirius took him home via side-along apparition and the first thing Aries did when he got home was throw up. **

"Not pleasant." Aries remarked. Andromeda looked worried.

**Uncle Sirius vanished the sick. He put the back of his hand against Aries' neck and forehead. "Ree, go wash up and go sleep. I'll bring you some food if you feel like eating." Uncle Sirius said. Aries hugged him before going upstairs.**

"I hate being sick." Aries complained.

**Aries showered and flumped onto his bed. Uncle Sirius came in shortly after. "What happened Ree?" He asked carefully. "Too many emotions." Aries mumbled. Uncle Sirius looked contemplative and Aries knew he was worried. **

"You need an off switch for that." Ted said worriedly.

"**Well, while you boys were away, I managed to find that chest your Da left you." Sirius said.**

Regulus sat up straighter and looked highly interested.

**Aries quickly rose up before groaning. "Can I look through it?" Aries asked. His Da may have known he would have gotten like this, and left something for him. **

Regulus hoped he did.

"**I was going to save that for Christmas, but if you feel up to it." Uncle Sirius said before he conjured the chest. It was a small ebony chest with tarnished silver hinges.**

"Fancy." Lily noted.

"**Yell if you need anything." He said as he patted Aries head and walked out of the room with a sad and worried air clinging to him. **

"Sirius goes mother hen on you boys?" Remus asked. "More like mother mutt." Leo said. Sirius threw a pillow at his son, causing Leo to stumble out of his seat.

**Aries slid down and pulled the key out from his small box he keeps under his bed. He opened the chest and began to carefully look through it. **

"You still have it." Harry piped in. Regulus smiled.

**His Da packed several fancy robes, all colored emerald, silver or black.**

Aries was proudly showing his emerald robe.

**Aries snorted at the obvious Slytherin pride. **

"James is the same with Gryffindor." Sirius and Dorea intoned.

**There was a thick leather-bound book that had a silver etching of a crest on it. It had a skull on top. Inside the crest was an armored hand holding a blade, and three ravens above what looked like a scroll. "Trojours Pur." Aries read.**

"Always pure." The Blacks instantly said. "The family crest." Sirius explained to the confused looks.

**He slid that onto his bed to read later. **

Aries hummed.

**There was a photo of the three of them. They we're standing side by side and entwined their fingers. His mum kept dreamily smiling at the window and his Da, who pulled her into a twirl as he held Aries. He moved that picture to his nightstand.**

"Still takes it with him." Leo said with a smiel.

**There were several things in here he kept that made no sense to Aries. There was a snitch,**

"Seeker." Sirius coughed.

**a necklace,**

Aries pulled a cord out from under his clothes. The necklace had three things on it: a silver medallion with etchings on both sides, a ring that was centered by a violet colored crystal and a piece of a fang.

**a bundle of letters Aries will go through later and a music box that played a slow soothing chime. **

Aries hummed the tune of the music box quietly to himself.

**Aries kept the music box playing as he went to sleep with Tawny curled up next to the music box. **

Aries looked a bit sad.

**Aries dreamed that he was with his parents. His mum was humming to the music box's melody, and his Da was running a hand through his hair. He woke up shortly after never to remember that dream.**

"Glad I know it now." Aries said. Regulus pulled his older son into a tight hug as Harry closed the book.


	4. Chapter 4

**{Sorry I haven't updated for so long! I'll try to be quicker now… Hopefully. I am going to continue bashing Dumbledore, Snape, and Lily(I still don't like her,sorry) and will start bashing Ginny and Molly Weasley from here on out. If you have taken offence to anything I have written please, kindly let me know. Oh, as a side note- if you're wondering about the whole Xenophilius Lovegood and Lucius Malfoy look alike situation, that's based on the movies and how the actors looked alike.}**

"Who wants to read next?" Harry asked. "I will." Lucius said as he accio-ed the book to himself.

**Chapter 4. Now You See Me**

Many people rolled their eyes at the titles.

**Leo was worried about Aries, but the twins helped cheer him up a lot. **

The three adults from the future shared a smile that made Septimus proud.

**They'd exchange prank plans and jokes.**

The Marauders shared a knowing smirk.

**Leo also started to notice that Percy was being very secretive about something, but he decided to leave him be.**

"Does he have a girlfriend?" Sirius asked. The three made no mention of it and ignored him causing the dog animagus to pout.

**Other than that Percy was good at giving advice about what second year tests were going to be like. **

"He's not too bad, but he needs to cut loose every now and then." Harry added as he bounced Teddy on his knee.

**Leo kept getting irritated when he saw how often Ginny would stare at Harry. It wasn't his usual 'Oh, you're famous' stare, it was like a look that said she liked Harry. As in LIKE liked Harry. **

"You want me all to yourself." Harry said with a smirk. "I can't help it Harry." Leo said with a shit eating grin. "You promised to share." Aries said with a pout at his cousin.

The Marauders cracked. The three from the future joined in the laughter. It took a while for them to get themselves back in their chairs, but they did, even if they still giggled.

**So he took to pranking her a bit more often.**

Septimus frowned a bit.

**It wasn't that hard to since he had to sleep on her floor and he had access to her stuff. He needed to remember that trick with the socks. **

"What trick?" Sirius asked.

**Thankfully she kept blaming the twins, and they helped Leo get back at her… after he was mercilessly used to test their prank inventions.**

"So that's why you couldn't sit straight." Harry said. "No, I was prison banged." Leo said sarcastically. "I hope not." Ted said as he pulled a face. "Prison banged?" Sirius asked nervously. "You should be fine. In Muggle prisons it's all single gendered and the inmates can get together and some- er." Harry tried explaining. "Get anally raped." Aries finished dryly. "And thank you Captain Heartless." Leo said. "What it's true." Aries said. "Moving on!" Frank said loudly.

**When they went back home to pack for the next school year, Leo noticed that Aries was better. **

Some would argue that given the previous discussion.

**Papa made them a large dinner and invited Moony, Uncle Ted and Aunt Andy. Unfortunately Tonks, their daughter was busy at work.**

"Dora has a job?" Andromeda asked as she looked down at her daughter. Harry nodded. Soon Teddy was being lifted by Leo who was tossing him up and catching him.

**It was amazing. Leo was sure he would never get tired of having a Papa. **

"And this time you'll have your Mama." Sirius said determinedly.

**When Leo went up to his room his vision shifted. He saw his Mama and Uncle Regulus.**

"I like you guys better alive." Leo said as Teddy cooed and his hair went orange.

**Leo sees them more often, but he doesn't get as freaked out like earlier during his first year. **

"Oh really?" Aries asked seriously. Leo ignored his cousin and tried talking Teddy into turning his hair black. Instead Teddy went periwinkle.

**He doesn't really say when they show up or not, he knows Papa, Ree and Harry might not be okay with it just yet. Once he did over the summer and he never wanted his Papa to look that sad ever again. **

Leo blushed at the sad coos he got.

"**Hey." Leo said as he sat on his bed. "Leo, you need to be careful at Hogwarts." Mama warned him. "I know. Dumbledore and all that." Leo said.**

"You should listen to your mother." Sirius said, before clamping a hand over his mouth. "What?" Leo asked curiously. "I sound like my father!" Sirius wailed. Shizuka petted his hair soothingly making Sirius whine happily like a dog. "While you two are at it can I get a sibling or two?" Leo asked making them stop in embarrassment. Leo high fived Harry.

"**Leo he might try to get you, Harry and Aries under his thumb." Mama said sternly. Leo nodded. He knew that things weren't going to be entirely easy for him, they never were. "I know, but I won't let him." Leo swore.**

"Stubborn as all hell." Aries chortled.

**She looked at him briefly before giving him a grin. She moved her arms around him, and Leo swore he felt the faintest brush against him.**

Shizuka set her eyes on Leo who looked down and saw how Teddy's hair went teal and white.

**He tried to hug back instinctively but he felt only air.**

Shizuka went teary eyed.

**He gave her a smile before sleeping with a heavy heart. **

Shizuka walked up and pulled her son into a tight hug. Aries swiped Teddy away as Leo hugged her back tightly.

**The day they had to go to King's Cross everything was hectic. Moony had to help the boys get to the train, since Papa… had finally gone crazy. **

"Gone?" James and Remus asked. Sirius smacked his two friends on the shoulder.

**Leo wasn't sure whether to laugh or be worried at what he saw in the living room.**

"Worried." Aries said.

**Moony had Harry over his shoulder as he struggled towards the door. Papa was on the floor holding Moony's legs. "PLEASE MOONY!" Papa screamed. "THEY HAVE TO GO SIRIUS!" Moony yelled back. "I DON'T WANT THEM TO!" Papa screamed again.**

Many people laughed. "You have withdrawal issues." Lily said. "He just wanted to spend more time with us." Harry said curtly. "He's acting like an overgrown puppy." Lily huffed. "Well he is Zuka's _cucciolo."_ Liliana said.

**In the end, they were on their way to King's Cross and Papa was hugging them all of them whole car ride over. **

Sirius blushed at the looks he got.

"**Whose car is this?" Harry asked. "A friend's. I'm borrowing it." Moony answered. They got there and they hurried towards the platform. **

"We were running way too late." Harry explained.

**They ran into the Weasley family and they all rushed to get on the platform. Leo bolted after Percy after saying his goodbyes.**

"You boys are really hauling arse." Frank said.

**Soon he got his trunks packed and was on the train. He managed to find the twins and Aries, but Leo searched up and down the train, but he couldn't find Harry or Ron.**

James and Liliana looked at Harry. Harry blushed and looked away.

**Hours began to tick by and Leo was getting really anxious. **

"You are a lot like your father." Shizuka said fondly.

**He sat with Vela, Aries, Neville, and Luna. "Do you have a bad case of wrackspurts?" Luna asked. **

"Ah, could be." Xenophilius said. Lucius looked awkwardly at him. "You said the books would explain why Lovegood and Malfoy look so alike right?" Remus asked. "It might be in this book or the next one." Aries said. Lucius and Abarax shared an uncomfortable look.

"**No, I'm just worried about Harry and Ron." Leo said as he nervously munched on a pumpkin pasty. **

"You eat when you're sad, you eat when you're hungry, you eat when you're happy, nervous, or depressed, and yet you have never been fat. What is your secret?" Aries asked. Leo shrugged. "Metabolism, and exercise." Leo replied.

"**I'm sure we'll see them later." Vela said comfortingly. Leo didn't look convinced.**

"You should listen to her more often." Aries said. Leo gave his cousin a shrewd look.

"**You could've just missed them with that bad sense of direction you have." Aries said. Leo huffed. "Face it Leo, it's worse than mine." Neville said. **

"That's pretty bad then I take it?" Alice asked. "Neville just has bad memory, Leo's just hopeless." Harry said. "Hey!" Leo shouted indignantly.

**Leo blushed at how true it was. "I forgot about the times you had to help him." Aries said with a smirk. "I'm going to go look for them again." Leo said before putting half a chocolate frog into his mouth. **

"Nice change of topic, Padfoot Jr." James said with a thumbs up.

**He wandered up the train. He found out that Lavender and Patil were braiding each other's hair, Fred and George were conniving with Lee, Padma was reading with Terry and Cedric was talking to a Ravenclaw girl named Cho Chang.**

"But no Harry." Liliana huffed. Harry smiled at her.

**He crossed Draco and Blaise as Crabbe and Goyle didn't leave the food filled compartment. **

Lucius, Abarax, and Narcissa all looked interested then.

"**Hiya Drake." Leo said. Draco gave him a cold look and Blaise stared at him.**

"You give nicknames to everyone, don't you?" Regulus asked. "It his way of showing that he likes you." Aries said. "Or hates you, depending on the name." Harry added.

"**What do you want?" Draco asked with a twitching eye. "Have you seen Harry or Ron?" Leo asked. **

Evryone looked at Leo strangely. "What?" Leo asked obliviously. Sirius muttered something, but the words Hufflepuff, and duffer could be picked up by those close to him.

"**No. Why do you ask?" Blaise asked chillingly. **

"Rather intense bloke if you ask me." Aries added as he scratched his neck.

"**I looked all over and haven't found them." Leo said. "Did they miss the train?" Draco asked. **

Harry looked at the ceiling.

**Leo frowned. He REALLY hoped that wasn't the case. "I hope not." Leo admitted. **

Leo glared at Harry and Aries smirked.

"**You're Dad's doing well?" Draco asked.**

Everyone was shocked that Draco would ask that.

**Leo nodded with a grin. "I heard he's the only long term Azkaban prisoner to keep sane." Blaise added. Leo's grin dropped as he looked at the dark skinned boy. **

"Define sane." Aries said. Sirius chucked a pillow at his nephew, and it him square in the face.

"**I heard that too." Leo added. "You cut your hair over the summer." Blaise pointed out. "Yes?" Leo asked awkwardly. "You look more like a boy now." Blaise added with a look in his eye that made Leo shudder. **

"Intense is right." Alice said.

"**Thanks, I'm going to keep looking for them." Leo said before walking past them with a wave.**

"Wasn't he the one you-" "Shut up." Leo interrupted his cousin. Aries glared at Leo.

**He walked back down the train after looking for the tenth time in the hour. **

"You sure are persistent." Moody added. Leo nodded.

**He barely neared a compartment door when he heard "I had Harry Potter sleep over at my house!" Leo slunk back and peered inside. It was Ginny and some other soon to be first year girls.**

Harry rolled his eyes.

"**Really?" A bob-haired girl asked in wonder. "Yes. He had the scar and those pretty green eyes." Ginny gushed.**

"The eyes he got from his mother." James gushed. Liliana blushed a bit as James stared deeply into said eyes.

**Leo was sure he was turning a very pretty green right then.**

"Nope Teddy is." Leo said. Everyone turned to see Teddy's hair. It was emerald with streaks of fern green. "Oh he's adorable." Andromeda gushed. Teddy babbled happily as he clapped his small hands.

"**I heard he has messy black hair." A chubby girl asked. "He does! I even got to touch it once when he fell asleep!" Ginny said excitedly. **

"She did what now!?" Harry asked in shock. Septimus was awkwardly giving Harry an apologetic smile.

**Leo grimaced. "My mum really likes him." Ginny added. "You're so lucky." The bob haired girl said jealously.**

"I was twelve!" Harry said in shock. "I've had worse." Leo said with a shudder making Aries grimaced and Harry growled.

"**My mum said one day I can marry him!" Ginny said excitedly. **

Harry's jaw swung unhinged then.

**Leo was sure his jaw dropped.**

Aries had to close Harry's mouth.

"**Every girl dreamed that though." The chubby girl pointed out. Ginny huffed rudely. "Well one day I'm going to be Mrs. Potter! I heard my mum mention how perfect it would be if we got married." Ginny said. **

"The dreams of a little girl." Septimus said. Harry's face said otherwise, but he didn't say anything.

**Leo walked off with a loud snort. He walked back and decided to plan with Aries on how to prank Snape. **

"Try to freeze him!" James said excitedly. Lily glared at him. "Leo, might we have a word?" Moody growled. Leo nodded and they walked off into an empty room that was provided for them. "I notice that Lily Evans is not all that nice still." Moody said curtly.

"I did what I could. She just seems to naturally have a mean streak that she usually saves for those two." Leo added. "And that compulsion charm, you said something of an ever growing obsession along with it?" Moody asked. "The obsession stems from her feelings for James whether she knows them yet or not." Leo added.

"She'll still be compelled?" Moody asked. "To a lesser extent than it originally would have been. So when this is all over get her to a mind healer." Leo said seriously.

Moody nodded and walked out and back to his seat.

"**Soap and water?" Aries asked. "Nah, we'll use the school's whole supply on him to get him clean." **

Everyone except Lily thought that was funny.

**Leo dismissed seriously making Velvela and Neville snort and have to hold back fits of giggles. "I don't think the Slytherins even like him." Leo added.**

"Quite a few don't actually." Barty said. "Because he's a half blood?" Lily asked. "No, his personality." Regulus said.

"**Why not?" Neville asked. "Back when I was in the Hospital Wing, I talked to Draco." Leo ignored the faces Aries, Neville and Velvela pulled. "Anyway, even he said that he only really sucks up to Snape so he'll give him extra help with potions." Leo added.**

The Malfoy men shared a smirk at how truly Slytherin Draco was.

"**Really?" Aries asked. "Yeah, apparently Snape is his godfather." Leo added with a disgusted look.**

"Not now though." Lucius said sternly. "We'll find someone else." Narcissa said darkly as she thought back to Snape's exposed threats.

"**Should I feel sorry for Malfoy?" Neville asked. "Nah, he's a bigoted bullying jerk, but he may grow out of it." Leo said hopefully.**

Narcissa and Lucius huffed.

**Aries nodded his head reluctantly. "People can change." Velvela added hesitantly. "Not everyone does though." Luna added airily. **

"Luna seems very wise for a girl that young." McGonagall said.

"**True." They all agreed.**

"Preach." Many said.

"**Oh, speaking of godfathers, do you have one Aries?" Velvela asked.**

"I'm not saying anything." Aries said stubbornly before anyone could ask him.

**Leo noticed how Aries stiffened as he looked out the window with his head in his propped up hand. "He died a long time ago." Aries said after a tense moment. "Mine did too." Neville said sadly. **

Several people looked solemn and bowed their head s briefly.

**The compartment was silent in intense sorrow. "We have Lockhart for Defense now." Leo said to break the tension. **

Sirius shuddered and Remus growled.

**Aries and Neville groaned, but to his complete and utter shock, Velvela swooned. "What he-? WHY!?" Leo spluttered. **

"She hung around you too much." Aries said.

"**He is a good looking wizard." Luna added. Aries' head slipped out of his hand and hit the window.**

Aries rubbed his forhead.

"**Really Moon?" Aries asked indignantly. "He is, but I think he spends a lot more time on his looks." Velvela said with a smirk.**

"She got you good." Sirius whistled.

**Leo felt duped. **

"I was."

**He tickled her in revenge. **

"It works on James." "Padfoot!"

**They chatted amicably and spent time together, while all silently questioning where Harry and Ron were.**

Harry muttered under his breath.

**They eventually got to close to Hogwarts and when they stopped at Hogsmeade Station, Leo's eyes burned. He changed his vision, and saw Mama, Uncle Reggie, Prongs and Lana.**

"Leave my nicknames alone." Leo said to the looks he was getting.

"**We can't come with you." His Mama said sorrowfully.**

"_NANDE!?"_ Shizuka asked loudly.

**Leo went cold. He didn't want them to leave. **

Leo lowered his gaze.

"**There's some kind of barrier on the grounds." Uncle Regulus added.**

Leo growled much like a certain black dog the Marauders loved.

"**Leo, do us a favor and look after Harry will you?" Prongs asked. Lana was giving him a sad smile. **

"Anytime." Leo said with a faltering grin.

**He didn't want them to leave. He wanted to his Mama to sing him folk songs when he couldn't sleep. He wanted to help Uncle Reggie help Aries. He wanted Prongs and Lana to spend time with Harry.**

Leo hugged Teddy softly and he kept his head down.

"**We'll be hanging around Paddy and Moony. So keep up the pranks!" Prongs said with a cheeky grin. "**_**Imbecille." **_**Lana said with a teasing grin.**

Dorea choked on a sob and Charlus had to comfort her with moist eyes.

"**Do you want them to get in trouble?" She asked. "What's life without a few risks, **_**Tesoro?**_**" Prongs asked as he tossled his messy hair. **

James gave Liliana a kiss on the cheek. She hugged him tightly as if he could go away at any moment.

**Leo turned to look away and saw Mama and Uncle Regulus. They both had this distant look in their eyes, and Leo thought they were lonely. Papa and Aries' mama were still alive, but they were dead. Leo wasn't sure what was worse, being dead, or being alone until your loved one joins you.**

Everyone looked sadly at Leo. He didn't look up at them, but Aries was sure he heard him hum to a sleepy Teddy.

**Leo was pulled out of his thoughts by Luna. "What has you so sad?" She asked. Leo gave her a smile. "Nothing, just the thought of homework." He said as jokingly as possible. "Your eyes say it's something much sadder than that." Luna said.**

"She's as observant as her dad." Aries said.

**Then they stopped. They waved goodbye to Luna and thankfully no one asked what she meant.**

"We don't need to." Sirius said sadly before giving his son a tight one armed hug.

**They walked towards these carriages and Leo was shocked. The pitch black carriages were being pulled by these skeletal looking horses. "What on earth are those things?" Aries asked in shock. "You can see them too?" Leo asked. **

"What are those?" Lily asked. "Thestrals." Sirius said and Remus exchanged a worried look as Shizuka put a comforting hand on Sirius' shoulder.

"**What?" Velvela asked. "I don't see anything except the carriages." Neville said. They all clambered into the carriage and Leo was quietly thinking. **

"I was wondering what those things were." Leo said.

**Leo's hand brushed his wand and he remembered something. Thestrals were described like those creatures in the Magical Creature books Papa had from his school days. Mr. Ollivander said his wand had thestral hair, but what – Oh, only seen by those who witnessed death. Leo paled. Who did Aries see?**

"Who did you two see?" Arcturus asked. "It gets explained later." Aries said blankly.

**He was pulled out of his thoughts when the ghosts of his family began to fade. He tried to grab his Mama's hand but he forgot that it would only go through her. He grabbed air as she looked sadly back at him, before she vanished before his eyes.**

Leo walked up and handed Teddy to Remus to give his parents a tight hug.

**Leo closed his eyes and curled up tightly into a ball. He felt someone hug him, but he didn't budge for the whole trek to Hogwarts. **

As the family continued to hug sadly, Remus cradled Teddy gently with a soft smile.

**He managed to put on a smile when they entered the Great Hall as they wandered to their respective House tables. Leo and Velvela were sitting and talking to Cedric when the sorting began. Leo spaced out for most of it. Thestral hair, funny. The boy who saw dead people used undead horse hair. **

Harry looked sadly at Leo.

**Velvela elbowed him and he saw that Luna was being sorted. "RAVENCLAW!" The hat shouted. **

Xenophilus smiled and did a strange dance.

**Leo cheered loudly and he grinned knowing that Aries had a friend in Ravenclaw now.**

"One of the best friends anyone can ask for." Aries said strongly.

**Then it came time for Dumbledore's speech. **

Everyone frowned deeply.

"**I am pleased to welcome you all to a new school year here at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Dumbledore said softly in a purple floral robe. "I must remind you all to look at the list of contraband items in our caretaker, Mr. Filch's office. Quidditch trials are not open to first years, and that the forest is forbidden to all students." Dumbledore said as he casted his eyes at the Weasley twins. **

"Hopefully we can take him down before the boys are born." Arcturus said. "Perhaps if we all worked together on this we can get him from every angle." Charlus offered. Septimus and Abarax looked sharply at each other. "Just to get the old goat out." Abarax sneered. "Agreed." Septimus said with a fierce glare.

**Leo kept a neutral face as he stewed in anger while Dumbledore introduced Lockhart. Dumbledore did something to keep his family away from him, and he was going to figure out what it was. **

"If you could you would raise hell whenever someone threatened your family." Harry said.

"**Stop looking so intense and eat." Velvela said with a playful shove. Leo grinned at her and began to eat.**

"Like the sister I never had." Leo said happily.

**He had just started digging into his fruit tart when he heard a distinct owl like whistle from the Ravenclaw table. **

Aries made a noise that sounded like a barn owl.

**Velvela sighed at his smirk. "I'll eat your food." She said as he snuck away to join Aries between tables. **

"Glutton." Harry coughed.

**They snuck around and got towards the twins, without them noticing them. Leo muttered quickly under his breathe and soon the twins had long greasy black hair. **

The Marauders snorted back fits of laughter.

**Then Aries muttered something, and he had the twins forcibly doing a complicated and energetic tango. **

The Marauders cannot hold that laugh back any longer at those words.

**As everyone laughed loudly they stood on top of the Gryffindor table and gave sweeping bows. **

As they did now.

**Unfortunately McGonagall unspelled the twins, and Leo knew why he wasn't a brave Gryffindor then. Leo ran atop the table trying to avoid Fred. **

"Bok, bok bok BAWK!" Aries clucked and Leo threw his shoe at him.

**He jumped onto the Hufflepuff table, but he slipped in someone's gravy and landed on Cedric. Soon a Snapeified Fred dragged him by his ankles. "CEDRIC!" Leo begged. Cedric gave him a pitying look and a sad salute. Leo wound up with purple hair, ice cream down his robes and a sore head from a thorough noogie. **

"Ooh, tough luck." Sirius said.

**Aries was better off with only ice cream and a load of gravy in his hair.**

Regulus snorted.

**Soon their heads of houses fixed them and they went back to their seats. **

The Marauders booed.

**When dinner was over, they all went to their dorms. Leo thought he saw Harry and Ron but Cedric moved him along with a busy crowd.**

"You probably did." Harry said.

**Soon Leo was inside the Hufflepuff dorm room, and chatted with Cedric and Velvela, and he joked around with some first years. **

Several people smiled. Teddy curled in closer to Remus and nuzzled his chest.

**When everyone else went up to sleep, Leo spotted the Fat Friar. "Good Evening Friar." Leo said cheerfully. "Ah, Leo. Another night where you can't sleep?" The ghost asked kindly.**

"You had frequent bouts of insomnia?" Andromeda asked worriedly. Leo nodded.

"**Yeah." Leo admitted. "Is there anything new going on for you and the other ghosts?" Leo asked. **

"He loves to talk to the students." Ted said with a grin.

**The Friar looked thoughtful. "Aside from Peeves, and Nicholas' denied attempts to get into the beheaded club or whatever it's called, there isn't much. Oh, I take that back." The Friar said. "What is it?" Leo asked curiously. **

Everyone unconsciously sat at the edge of their seats in anticipation.

"**You remember last year, how Quirrel died?" The Friar asked. Leo nodded. "Dumbledore claims he was possessed by You-Know-Who." Leo said.**

"I hope not." Many said.

**The Friar nodded. "Dumbledore made a particular exorcism over the summer." The Friar added. **

"Really?" Shizuka asked curiously.

"**Exorcism?" Leo asked. "He essentially made it impossible for non-residential ghosts to enter Hogwarts grounds." The Friar explained.**

"That's what's keeping you guys away!" Barty said quickly.

**Leo was bug eyed. "Is that possible?" He asked. "It is, but it is rather difficult. In fact every ghost here was against the idea." The Friar said with a frown. **

"Really?" McGonagall asked shocking everyone.

"**How come?" Leo asked. The Friar looked uncomfortable.**

Ted was confused. "I've never seen him like that.

"**Well, most were worried about him, or themselves, but there is another reason." The Friar said vaguely. "What is it?" Leo asked. "Well Leo, I do believe you know already." The Friar said before vanishing. **

"That's the end." Lucius said before closing the book.

**{Here you go. I hope to update quicker than I did with this one. Oh, as a side note- if you're wondering about the whole Xenophilius Lovegood and Lucius Malfoy look alike situation, that's based on the movies and how the actors looked alike.}**


	5. Chapter 5

**{I am using more references from the movie, as you'll see shortly. Hope you enjoy!}**

"Who wants to read next?" Lucius asked. "I will." Abarax said as he took the book from his son.

**Chapter 5. Lockhart is a Pillock**

"Preach." James said as Remus growled, thus waking Teddy. Teddy whimpered and Remus snapped out of his anger and started to rock Teddy back to a calm state. No one seemed to notice the sad looks Harry, Aries and Leo shared.

**Harry was glad he wasn't expelled for going along with Ron's idea to use Mr. Weasley's enchanted car when they missed the train.**

"YOU DID WHAT!?" Liliana shouted. Harry looked completely shocked and slightly terrified.

**He wasn't sure what was worse: being attacked by the Whomping Willow,**

Remus grimaced.

**Snape looking so disappointed he wasn't expelled,**

Everyone grimaced, even Lily.

**or that Dumbledore wrote a letter to Sirius. **

Everyone looked carefully at the dog animagus.

**The next day Harry and Ron walked down with a grin. At least Professor McGonagall didn't take any points off of them yet.**

"So far so good!" James cheered, not noticing his son's fixed smile.

**He should have known his day would go badly.**

James wilted dramatically against the table.

**Everything went south when they were in the Great Hall. Harry, Ron and Neville sat down at the Gryffindor Table. They invited Hermione to join them, to try and work out last year's differences. She joined them sparingly as she had Voyages with Vampires propped against a milk jug.**

"Ick." Many people uttered at the mention of the book.

**Aries brought Luna over with him. "Hello." Luna said airily.**

Xenophilius smiled with a dreamy look.

**Shortly after they sat down they saw Velvela and Leo talking to Cedric about something. "Wonder what that's about?" Ron asked.**

"How the summer was." Leo answered.

"**Who knows?" Aries asked with a shrug.**

"**I hope the mail comes soon. Gran hopefully mailed whatever I forgot." Neville said meekly.**

Augusta shook her head fondly.

"**I'm sure she did Nev." Velvela said with a grin.**

"You did." Harry added making Neville's parents smile.

**As Velvela started talking to Luna the mail came in. Then a large grey blob crashed into Hermione's jug and they were doused in feathers and milk. "Errol!" Ron groaned as Aries wiped the milk off of his face. **

Septimus groaned. His son needed to retire that owl.

**Ron pulled the ancient owl to its feet when Harry noticed a damp red letter that horrified Ron.**

"A howler…" Many teenagers grimaced.

"**Don't worry, I think he's okay." Hermione said as she poked Errol with a pencil. "No that…" Ron said ominously. **

"Oh my poor grandson, it must be from Molly." Septimus said as he clamped a hand over his eyes.

**Then the letter began to smoke. "She sent me a howler." Ron said in disbelief.**

"She usually sends them to the twins." Leo added with a grimace.

"**You better open it Ron. I got one from my Gran once and ignored it-" Neville gulped. "It was horrible."**

"Why did I do that?" Augusta asked. Those from the future just shrugged. Teddy cuddled closer to Remus, making him grin softly.

**Harry heard of howlers from Sirius' stories and he was slightly worried about Ron as Neville plugged his ears. Ron opened the letter and a booming roar that shook the dust off of the ceiling as the envelope formed a mouth.**

"Oh my word…" McGonagall said as she rubbed an ear unknowingly.

"**RONALD WEASLEY!" The voice was Mrs Weasley's a hundred times louder than usual. **

"I think I saw an ear bleed." Leo added.

"**HOW DARE YOU STEAL THAT CAR!? I AM ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED!" Ron was sinking below the table with a violently red face. "YOUR FATHER IS FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK AND IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT! IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL SEND YOU STRAIGHT HOME!" Then the howler turned to Ginny. "Congratulations on making Gryffindor Ginny, your father and I are so proud." The howler said kindly before tearing itself into pieces on Ron's plate.**

"What the actual fuck?" James asked. Septimus frowned at her behavior towards his two grandkids. She made no mention of how dangerous the stunt was.

**Not that Ron would notice, he was hunkering underneath the table. **

Most people didn't blame her.

**But just when everyone started to eat again Harry paled when he saw Mordred fly in with a red envelope.**

Everyone looked shocked at a flabbergasted Sirius Black. "I actually sent you one?" Sirius asked. "You sent several over the years." Aries added with an embarrassed look.

**The envelope landed in front of Harry and Aries scooted far away from it. Harry opened the letter shakily. **

Sirius went sheepish.

"**HADRIAN JAMES POTTER!" Harry had heard Sirius yell before but this was rattling and coming close to cracking the windows.**

"Amplified Black lungs." Aries groaned. Sirius went red at the looks his friends sent him.

"**WHAT ON EARTH WERE YOU AND RON THINKING!? I'VE TOLD YOU COUNTLESS TIMES HOW DANGEROUS THAT BLOODY TREE IS! WHY DIDN'T EITHER OF YOU WAIT FOR HELP!? YOU AND RON COULD HAVE DIED!" **

"Guilt trip." James and Remus said casting looks at the dog animagus. Liliana and Dorea looked pleased that Sirius was telling them off for doing something that dangerous at the age of twelve.

**Harry paled and sunk low at the realization that they really could have died.**

"You just realized that!?" Liliana hissed. Harry did the Gryffindor thing and hid behind his dad.

"**IF I HAD LOST YOU, LEO OR ARIES I COULDN'T BARE IT!" Harry felt really guilty.**

"Leo's a bigger sap though don't worry." Aries added. "OI!" Leo shouted.

"**Just don't be afraid to ask help from me or Remus, okay? And I'm glad you and Ron are safe and in one piece." The howler said in a low voice before it burned itself to ash.**

Charlus and Dorea shared a smile. They were so proud of Sirius for being a caring parent.

**Harry and Ron spent the remainder of breakfast under the table. McGonagall passed them their schedules and she made Aries, Luna and Velvela go back to their house tables.**

"Minnie!" The marauders booed. Teddy rocked Teddy after jostling him. "Paternal instinct." Aries whispered to Harry, making the green eyed wizard smile.

**Neville grinned. They had double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. **

"He's brilliant at the subject." Leo added with a wide smile.

**Soon they wandered across the vegetable patches towards the greenhouses waiting for Professor Sprout. Leo was asking Neville about Devil's Snare when Professor Sprout came in with Lockhart tailing her.**

Everyone pulled a face at the mention of the attention whore that is Lockhart.

**Harry looked up and noticed the slings on the whomping willow from where the Weasley's Ford Anglia crashed into it last night.**

"Don't pity the tree. It's a menace." Remus said sternly. "Took some poor bloke's eye." Frank added with a grimace.

**Lockhart was a big flashy contrast to the down to earth Herbology Professor.**

"Not even worth comparing her to that flashy turd." Leo huffed.

**Harry heard Leo snort at Lockhart's gold trimmed turquois robes and hat.**

"I swear he sounds gay." Fank said. "We have speculated." Aries said. "No definitive answer yet." Harry said.

"**Oh, hello there!" He said with a bright smile to all the students. Harry was sure if Aries was there he'd say something vicious by now. **

"You know me so well." Aries said with a fake look of sincerity. Regulus snorted.

"**I was just telling Professor Sprout here the right way to mend a Whomping Willow. But I don't want you getting the idea that I'm better at Herbology than her!" Lockhart beamed. **Ted was glaring at the book alongside Leo.

**Harry didn't need to look to know Leo was glaring at Lockhart.**

"You are too predictable." Harry said. Leo made a rude one handed gesture at him.

"**In fact I came across some exotic plants on my travels…" Professor Sprout looked grumpy and not her usual cheery self.**

Everyone looked shocked. They don't ever remember seeing her upset.

"**Green House three!" She shouted. They all walked off to the green house. Leo and Harry were the last ones there, but a pair of hands stopped the both of them. **

Harry wasn't sure who looked more terrifying: his dad and godfather, or his mother and Shizuka.

**Harry turned and it was Lockhart. **

Teddy made a cute little growl as he growled like a protective Remus would.

"**Mind if I borrow these two?" Lockhart asked Professor Sprout. She looked like she did mind and angrily opened her mouth when Lockhart said "That's the ticket!" and slammed the door in her face. **

"Well I never!" McGonagall huffed. Everyone was losing whatever patience they held for Lockhart.

"**Harry." Lockhart said. "Harry, Harry, Harry." Harry and Leo shared annoyed looks. "When I heard- well I could have kicked myself." Lockhart said. **

"What's this idiot babbling about?" James growled more like his canine friends than a stag.

**Leo started to narrow his eyes at Lockhart. **

Sirius and Shizuka did too.

"**Gave you a taste for publicity, didn't I? The stunt with the flying car- a cry for attention and fame." Lockhart said. **

"_Imbecille!" _Liliana shouted in frustration.

"**Oh, no-" Harry said quickly when he finally realized what Lockhart was saying. "Harry, Harry, Harry." Lockhart interrupted. **

"What's with the name thing?" Alice asked. "No idea." The three groaned.

"**You got a quick taste of the front page, and I understand wanting a bit more. Completely natural." Lockhart said**

"Harry doesn't have the big ego." Liliana grumbled. "I never thought I would say this, but he's worse than you Potter." Lily said in shock. Liliana rolled her eyes and noticed Harry send the red headed witch a dirty look for some reason.

**and Harry was wondering what was keeping Leo quiet this long.**

"You stood on my foot." Leo said with a dull look at Harry.

"**But you can't go around starting incidents with flying cars, plenty of time for that when you're older." Lockhart said importantly.**

"This man is an idiot." Lucius said.

"**Excuse me, but Harry hates being famous.**

Liliana gave a strong nod in affirmation.

**He went in the car since he missed the train.**

"I'm still not happy about that." Dorea muttered.

**And you're interfering with another professor's schedule!" **

McGonagall gave a thankful look to the book.

**Leo shouted with a fierce look in his eye and sparks whizzed out of his wand. **

"Oh you are so pissed." Barty said to Leo. "We've seen worse." Aries said as Harry shuddered.

**Lockhart looked surprised at the interruption.**

"Oh, I will do so much more than that." Leo said with a no good smirk.

"**Ah, Leo. Leo, Leo, Leo, you miss understand me. I actually wanted to talk to you about your father." Lockhart said **

Remus and James growled viciously and Sirius sent them a thankful smile.

**and Harry glared at him. If he says one bad thing about Sirius, he's toast.**

Sirius was bashful at the number of people who cared about him.

"**What?" Leo asked in a cold voice that could give Aries a run for his money.**

Aries and Regulus sent disbelieving looks at the book.

"**You see, I was wondering if he would like to accompany me some time as he readjusts to having a normal life." Lockhart said. "Lord knows what Azkaban is still doing to the man. I mean I have seen his prison pictures. And his family history…" Lockhart trailed off. **

Andromeda shouted "Why that dirty-!" as Bellatrix screeched "YOU WANKER!"

"**NEVER TALK ABOUT MY FAMILY AGAIN YOU ATTENTION LOVING MORON!" Leo shouted at the top of his lungs before dragging Harry back inside the greenhouse.**

"Fear the Leo." Harry said ominously. Leo smirked.

**Harry and Leo paired up with Justin and Hannah. Hannah was busy glaring at Leo. **

"Ugh, a Lockhart fan girl." Many groaned.

"**What was that all about?" Justin asked. "Lockhart thought I got in the car to get attention." Harry answered. "Why did you get in it?" Hannah asked after giving a dirty look at Leo. "Ron and I missed the train." Harry explained. They both nodded.**

"**And Leo?" Justin asked. "He started hinting that Leo's dad might be insane and a dark wizard." Harry said awkwardly as Leo ground his teeth. **

"That actually hurt." Leo said rubbing his jaw.

**Hannah instantly looked shocked and apologetic.**

"Loyal Hufflepuffs." Ted cheered.

"**Really?" Justin asked in shock.**

"Yep." Leo hissed.

**Leo looked more threatening than the werewolf Justin mentioned Lockhart zapped. **

Remus snorted derisively. Teddy tried to copy him but he would up sneezing like a puppy. "Aw. He's so cute." Alice gushed. Harry looked proud. Remus smiled down at the babbling baby boy, who changed his hair and eyes to match his own.

"**If I hear anyone bad talk my Papa…" **

"They will beg for mercy?" Regulus asked. Leo nodded.

**Leo's threat was drowned out by Professor Sprout. "Today we'll be learning about Mandrakes. Can anyone tell me about them?" Professor Sprout asked. Hermione was the first to answer. **

James and Sirius sent knowing looks over at Lily Evans.

**Harry stopped paying attention and thought back to what Lockhart was going to say. He knew Sirius came from a dark family, but Sirius wasn't evil.**

"Dark and evil aren't entirely synonymous." Xenophilius said airily.

**The rest of the lesson went on smoother even if Neville fainted.**

Alice frowned and Frank rubbed her arm comfortingly.

**Harry and Ron waited for Neville to wake up, before they walked up to get ready for lunch. **

Frank smiled at Septimus and Harry.

**Leo told their friends about Lockhart and Aries wore a look that promised pain.**

Aries was bored looking as he picked at his nails.

"**We have him next." Neville said sadly. Ron didn't believe him and pulled out his time table. "Bloody hell!" He exclaimed. **

"Fuck." Sirius swore.

"**While that's a bummer, who's going to keep Aries from hurting Lockhart?" Luna asked.**

"Looks like no one." Xenophilus answered his literary daughter.

**Leo snorted. Velvela and Harry shared a look. "Just let him Luna." Ron dismissed. Harry managed to crack a smile.**

He full on smirked this time.

**Harry's mood went sour after he ate. Standing in front of him was a small mousy-haired first year Gryffindor holding a large camera.**

"A Lockhart fan boy?" Regulus asked. "Nope." Leo said with a smirk.

**The minute Harry looked at him, the boy went bright red. **

"He's a Harry fan boy." Aries said. "Ah." Many said in realization.

"**Hi Harry, I'm Colin Creevy." He introduced. "I'm in Gryffindor too." He added. **

"He sounds polite." Liliana said.

"**Hi Colin." Harry said with a polite smile. Harry was feeling really awkward as Colin went even redder. **

"Did he have a crush on you or something?" James asked. Harry went bug eyed and shared a shock look with Aries and Leo.

"**I was wondering- well if I could- can I take a picture of you?" He asked holding the camera up. "A picture?" Harry asked in surprise. **

"I definitely wasn't expecting that." Harry amended.

**That's when Leo walked past him shouting "Draco!" Sure enough Malfoy was there, no doubt to pick another fight with Harry. Harry was thankful that Leo started talking to him if only to keep Malfoy distracted. **

"He was a jerk to me and Ron." Harry added at the looks the Malfoys and Narcissa sent him.

"**Could you maybe sign one too?" Colin asked meekly. Harry looked at Aries.**

"I hoped you would bail me out." Harry huffed as Aries smirked.

"**Sure he will. If you want I can take one later of the two of you." Aries offered.**

"You have two motives you jerk." Harry huffed angrily. Aries gave him a sweet smile as he flipped Harry off.

**Colin looked up and beamed at them. "You will? Th-that will be great!" Colin said.**

"I wound up taking several actually." Aries said.

"**Incoming!" Ron shouted, and he pulled Harry out of sight. **

"Idiot alert?" Remus asked.

**Harry saw Lockhart walk up to Colin.**

"Idiot alert." Aries confirmed.

"**Hello there." Lockhart said with a smile that made his large white teeth sparkle for some reason.**

"The vanity." Many groaned.

"**I was wondering if you would care for a signed photo of me." Lockhart said. Colin nodded and quickly took a picture. **

"The arrogance." Many snarled derisively.

**Then Lockhart saw Leo and Malfoy. "Ah, Leo, so good to see you again." Lockhart said. Harry saw Leo glare at him.**

"I'd be insulted if you didn't." Sirius said.

"**I hope you take no offence to what I said earlier, must you must surely know the rumors hanging around your family." Lockhart said. **

Arcturus grimaced.

**Then Malfoy opened his mouth. "Professor, I'm sure he's just-"**

Narcissa narrowed her eyes coldly at the book. That was her family this pillock was insinuating.

"**You know, dark wizards, Azkaban prisoners. But I was hoping to ask your father about Diagon Alley." Lockhart interrupted causing Malfoy to harshly sneer at him.**

"Hopefully we take him down a few pegs." Sirius said to the Malfoy heir.

"**Oh, you're that lovely woman's son. If your mother wants I'll be happy to owl a signed book or two." Lockhart said charmingly at Malfoy.**

Lucius shifted a possessive arm around Narcissa's waist as he sneered at the book.

**Harry and Ron had to hold back their laughs at Malfoy's face.**

"It was priceless." Harry added.

"**Well I best be off to class." Lockhart said as he sashayed away.**

"Weirdo." Alice snorted.

**Malfoy and Leo muttered something before giving a hard hand shake. Leo walked back with a dark smirk on his face.**

Sirius shared one too.

"**Lockhart has just made some enemies." Leo whispered to Harry as they separated for their lessons.**

"Oh this will end beautifully." Remus said darkly. Teddy looked up at the were wolf and patted a scarred cheek.

**Harry and Ron sat in the back of Lockhart's classroom. Harry kept his books faced away from him so he wouldn't have to see more of Lockhart. **

"Don't blame you." Many said.

"**Could've fried an egg on Colin's face." Ron snickered. "Shut up." Harry said going a bit red.**

"Oh it gets worse." Leo snorted. "NO SPOILERS!" The unknown voice shouted.

**That's when Lockhart stepped dramatically out and everyone shut up. The girls swooned and Lockhart snagged Neville's copy of Voyages with Vampires.**

Everyone had varying looks of displeasure. 

"**Me." he said, pointing at it and winking as well. "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, **

"How did that happen?" Charlus asked.

**Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League,**

Moody looked skeptical.

**and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most- Charming-Smile Award - but I don't talk about that.**

"You just did." Xenophilius said.

**I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!"**

Aries snorted derisively.

**A few people weakly smiled.**

"He was disappointed." Harry intoned.

"**I see you've all bought a complete set of my books—excellent." He said. **

"They were supposed to it was on the list." McGonagall said sternly.

"**I thought we would start off class with a small quiz on my books, to see how much you've taken in." Lockhart said.**

"He expected you two read all that rubbish?" Remus asked. The three nodded solemnly.

**He passed out the test and walked up to the front of the class. "You have thirty minutes—Begin!"**

**Harry looked down at his paper and read:**

**What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?**

"What?" McGonagall asked in shock.

**What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?**

"What relevance does this hold to Defense?" Augusta asked.

**What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?**

"I have no words." Regulus said in shock.

**On and on it went, over three sides of paper, right down to:**

**58. When is Gilderoy Lockhart's birthday, and what would his ideal gift be?**

"What is this fuckery?" Sirius asked.

**Harry just kept writing: I don't know and don't care. **

"What did you two write?" Alice asked. " 'I find this utterly pointless.' " Aries said. " ' Your books are garbage.' " Leo added. " ' You pissed me off before your first lesson.' " Aries added. " 'I hope you grow a brain.' " Leo said.

Many people laughed hard.

**In the end Lockhart got the tests back and began to tut at them. "My favorite color is lilac; I say so in Year with the Yeti." **

"This is rotting my brain." Shizuka whined.

**Harry was feeling his eye twitch.**

James' eye did too.

**And a few of you need to read Wandering with Werewolves, in there I clearly state that I want union between non-magical and magical people, though I won't say no to a bottle of Ogden's Firewhisky." He said with a roughish wink. **

"If he faced an actual werewolf I will eat my shorts." Remus deadpanned.

**Ron and Harry shared a disgusted look. Seamus and Dean coughed to hide their snickers. **

"He looked utterly ridiculous." Harry added. "He IS utterly ridiculous." Leo amended.

"**But Miss Hermione knew my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions - good girl! In fact" - he flipped her paper over - "full marks! Where is Miss Hermione Granger?" **

Many boys mimed a gag.

**Hermione held up a shaky hand. As Lockhart gave her ten points, Harry mimed a gag to Ron. **

James grinned.

"**Now a warning." Lockhart said abruptly. "In this class there is no telling how terrified you will be in this class. You will learn of things so inhumane you would wish to leave." Harry noticed Neville shrink in his seat briefly as Lockhart placed a covered cage on the desk.**

"What's he got planned?" Charlus asked with narrowed eyes.

"**Now I ask you to remain quiet, it may provoke them." Harry peered over his book pile curiously. Everyone in the class waited with baited breath.**

Everyone present (sans Harry, Aries and Leo) did too. There were many creatures you could fit in a cage.

"**Freshly caught Cornish Pixies!" He said taking the cover off. **

Everyone laughed hard.

**Inside the cage were pixies making rude faces at them. At that moment, the door opened and for some reason Aries and Leo walked in with a large crate each. "Ah." Lockhart said moving the crates with his wand. **

Sirius and Regulus shared a curious look.

**Harry looked at the two. Leo and Aries took one look at the cage before laughing hard. "Pi-pixies!" Leo snorted as he held his stomach. Aries was leaning against Leo as he could breathe, he was laughing too hard. **

Much like James and Sirius were currently.

"**Don't listen to them, nasty little blighters they are." Lockhart said as he shook a finger at them. "Now let's see what you make of them!" Lockhart said. Then he opened his cage and unleashed the pixies.**

"You MORON!" Everyone shouted.

**A group picked Neville up by his ears and hung him from the chandelier.**

The Longbottoms and Alice looked worried.

**Aries and Leo immediately stopped laughing and slammed the door. **

"As if Peeves was bad enough." Aries muttered. "Didn't need pixies too." Leo finished.

"**Aha! Peskipiksipesternomi!"Lockhart said**

"That's not even a real spell!" Remus shouted angrily. Teddy tried to growl but he wound up cooing at the end.

**only for a pixie to toss his wand out the open window. Harry glared as Lockhart hid behind his desk.**

Everyone else did too.

**Leo, Harry and Ron all picked up a text book and swatted the pixies. Aries pulled Harry aside. "We need to get Neville." Aries said. Harry looked up and nodded.**

Frank gave the boys a thankful look.

**As Aries and Harry got in position Aries whistled. "Diffindo!" Aries shouted as he cut the chandelier free. "Spongify!" Harry shouted and the table Neville landed on had softened to feel like a soft piece of rubber. **

"Nice!" Sirius and James cheered. Regulus gave his son a proud look.

**Then everything went wrong when Leo screamed.**

Sirius frowned and Shizuka went rigid as she grabbed her son's arm.

**Harry looked up to see the pixies holding him out the window.**

"WHAT THE FUCK IS LOCKHART DOING!?" Sirius shouted.

"**Leo!" Aries shouted as he ran towards him. Aries tried to grab Leo, but when he did, the pixies that were holding Leo dropped him, and Aries went tumbling out with him.**

Regulus gave his son a deeply concerned look.

**Harry wasted no time aiming at them "Wingarduim leviosa!" Soon Aries and Leo were levitating back towards them. **

Sirius and Regulus gave Harry thankful looks.

**Hermione froze all the pixies with an immobilization spell as Harry pulled them back inside after giving each of them a huge hug. **

Harry was bashful at the thankful looks he was getting from so many people.

**Lockhart stuck his head out and said"Now if you all would put them back-" Aries and Leo marched out of the door that they slammed on the way out.**

Everyone snorted.

**Harry helped Ron and Hermione put the pixies away. "How can anyone like him?" **

"Excellent question." McGonagall said.

**Ron asked derisively as he shoved a handful of pixies in the cage. "He just wanted us to get some hands on experience." Hermione defended. **

Everyone looked incredulously at the book in Abarax's hands.

"**Seriously? He didn't know what the bloody hell he was doing." Ron snapped. **

Septimus nodded in agreement.

"**Oh stop it already! He wrote all those books." Hermione pointed out. "Says he did." Ron added.**

"Wouldn't be surprised if he was a fraud." Frank said.

**Harry didn't say anything. Hopefully Sirius had time to get a letter about his first Defense lesson.**

"Oh, I most definitely will." Sirius said with a malicious look in his eye. Abarax closed the book, signifying that he was done with the chapter.


	6. Chapter 6

**{I plan to explain more about the Malfoy –Lovegood thing soon in the story. But I hope you like this next chapter. There will be more OCs in this chapter.}**

"Who wants to read next?" Augusta asked. Arcturus took the book and opened the page.

**Chapter 6. Double Take Down**

**Sirius Black was running his hands down his face.**

"Do you ever relax?" Barty asked. "He does." The three from the future said.

**He was still a nervous wreck thanks to the Hogwarts letter he got the other day. The fucking Whomping Willow. **

Sirius sent a look at Harry.

**When Remus apparated in to visit, Sirius sighed. "Moony, why is parenthood so tough?" He asked.**

"Too many things." All the current parents said.

"**What has you brooding like this so early in the morning?" Remus asked in concern. "Harry and Ron drove a flying car into the Whomping Willow." Sirius explained. Remus made a painful face.**

Remus winced.

"**They're fine, thankfully." Sirius sighed. Remus loosened up a bit more. **

"It's not your fault." James said.

"**Sirius, are you sure you want to go to the trial today?" Remus asked. **

"FINALLY!" Many people cheered.

"**Of course." Sirius said determinedly. **

"As if I would miss this." Sirius said with an evil glint in his grey eyes.

"**Those people took my boys from me. And I can't shake the feeling that they did something horrible to the boys." Sirius said. **

Everyone grimaced as the boys blushed.

**Remus sighed. "I know, but you have to remember that Dumbledore is probably going to get involved in this."**

All the patriarchs shared a determined look.

**Sirius glared down at his fist. "Well Dumbledore can go kiss a dementor for all he's done to us." Sirius growled. Remus patted his shoulder. "I know, trust me." Sirius noticed how Remus' eyes went a feral gold. **

People looked carefully at Remus and saw a gold tint in his normally brown eyes.

**The last time he saw that was after James got hurt on a Death Eater raid.**

"WHAT!?" Dorea asked in concern. James shrunk in his seat.

"**I better go. I need to make sure I get a good seat." Sirius said with a vicious smirk as he rubbed his hands together in anticipation.**

Sirius smirked.

**Remus nodded. "I managed to make more progress on Grimmauld Place. It should be livable soon." Remus added. **

Sirius and Regulus shared a conflicted look.

**Sirius was okay with restoring the place so that he could use it temporarily as a place to live, but more of an estate in London than a home.**

"Not a bad plan." Charlus said with a caring smile that eased Sirius' gloom slightly.

"**So feel free to make yourself at home." Sirius said to his best friend, causing Remus to smile. "Are you sure?" Remus asked. "Of course. Feel free to read in the study." Sirius said with a grin. **

"Bookworm." Sirius and James chimed. Harry and Leo shifted their eyes towards Aries.

**He tugged at the collar of the acromatula silk suit he wore. "Did you have to dress in that?" Remus chuckled.**

"It goes a long way to dress impressively." Arcturus said. Abarax and Charlus nodded.

"**I thought muggle clothes would be better." Sirius said. "Besides appearance is an important part of legal functions." He might not like to admit it, but his father Orion did teach him some important things and that was one thing he learned.**

Sirius shrugged and held Shizuka's hand.

**Sirius apparated to a muggle court house. It was decided that both trials would be held in a muggle court house, since the Dursleys were muggles. And it was decided to do both trials at once since the charges are the same. **

"I don't believe this has been done in ages." Moody said. Many of the adults nodded.

**Sirius walked inside and passed the Dursleys. It took all his will power not to glare at the lot.**

He didn't refrain from glaring at the book now though.

**As he walked to his seat, he saw in his peripheral vision that they were intimidated by his presence. **

Arcturus nodded.

**The muggle jury was comprised of government officials who knew of the magical world already so as to not break the Statute of Secrecy.**

"Nicely done." Moody growled.

**As everyone came into their seats, Sirius had to refrain from smirking when Marius Black came in and as prosecutor. **

"Marius Black?" Arcturus asked in shock. "That squib that was disowned?" Bellatrix asked. The boys nodded. "He actually is very important in the government." Aries added.

**The Dursleys were so in for it.**

Many people waited in anticipation.

"**All rise for Supreme Justice Charles Summerdale." The muggle judge was a middle aged man up in his seat in a black robe and a powdered wig. "I call into session the Trial of Black vs. The Dursleys." The judge said before hitting a gavel down. **

"Hopefully they won't let the Dursley's walk free." Regulus muttered.

**Madam Bones stood next to the judge, and looked sternly at all of them. "I hereby call this Wizengamot session into order." She declared and a section of the court room, dressed in red robes sat in their seats.**

Many of the adults nodded.

**Marius Black rose from his seat. "My client wishes to bring up the charges of child abduction, domestic servitude, theft, neglect, and abuse." Marius Black said.**

Many people winced. In a completely magical court Sirius could demand blood on behalf of the boys.

**The entire court room began to buzz with noise as Mr. Dursley turned beet red. "And who do you think you are!?" Mr. Dursley said harshly.**

"What. An. Idiot." Charlus said.

"**Order!" The muggle judge said. **

"Not helping himself any." Barty pointed out.

"**To answer your question Mr. Dursley I happen to work for the Queen as a secretary between the two worlds, and as this case requires the attention of both, I am acting well within my jurisdiction." Marius said coldly. **

All the Blacks were shocked. "The Queen!?" Bellatrix asked in shock. "Yeah, who better to help her than a squib from an Ancient and Noble family?" Aries asked.

**Sirius felt a grim satisfaction at how pale the Dursleys went.**

"Not the only one." Aries whispered.

"**Prosecution, you have the floor." The muggle Judge said, gesturing to the open space in front of them. "Your Honor, Madam Bones, Wizengmot and people of the Jury, not only is this a crime amongst non-magical people, but also a magical crisis. An international crisis." Now even the muggles looked anxiously at Marius. **

"Marius sure seems to know what he's doing." Sirius said.

"**You see all three of these boys are sons of nobilities both domestic and foreign. And these boys had been kept from their families, forced to serve the Dursleys and suffered cruelties for failing to do so." Marius sat down. **

"Nicely put." Arcturus admitted.

"**Defense?" The judge asked. The Dursley's lawyer was a scrawny old man who was sweating through his tweed suit. **

Many people snorted.

"**Your Honors." The man wheezed.**

"He's doomed." The patriarchs intoned. "Why?" Lily asked. "He failed to properly address all members of this court proceeding like Marius did." Charlus explained.

"**This is nothing more than a simple misunderstanding."**

"WHAT!?" The room exploded in anger and it took several minutes to calm down and settle the toddlers down.

**Sirius had to bite his tongue to keep from screaming the old man into his grave.**

"That had to hurt." Leo said with a wince.

"**These people you are accusing took these boys in under the assumption that they were their family." The old man said before breaking out into a fit of coughs and sat back down.**

"I think he just prematurely ended his statement." Abarax said. Many agreed with him.

"**Prosecution, you have the floor." The judge said. "There are numerous pieces of evidence both magical and non-magical." Marius said. **

"Really?" Moody asked curiously.

"**First we have medical reports from Healer Andromeda Black and Madam Poppy Pomfrey." Many of the magical court were in surprise at that. "We also have three reports from Doctor Carolyn Todd." The judges, jury and Wizengamot all received a copy of the medical reports.**

The boys grimaced as they remembered that summer. Doctor trips, mind healing sessions.

"**Now all the reports conclude to neglect and child abuse." Marius said strongly. "Vitamin D deficiency caused by lack of sunlight exposure, stunted growth, malnutrition, scars and broken bones that were never properly treated." Sirius felt sick to his stomach.**

Andromeda looked teary eyed. Everyone else had a sad look on their face.

**Even the judges looked appalled by this. "Do you have further evidence?" Madam Bones asked stiffly. "We have bank records that show the constant removal of their inheritance funds being transferred into pounds before being placed in the Dursley accounts."**

There was much grumbling in the Room of Requirement.

"**How much money?" The judge asked. "In magical currency thousands of galleons. In non-magical currency hundreds of thousands of pounds each year over the decade." **Everyone was flabbergasted.

"**You said earlier that the boys are sons of foreign nobility?" Judge Summerdale asked through his shock. "Yes Your Honor." Marius said with a nod. "All three boys are related to a British Wizard aristocratic family, the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black." Sirius heard the Wizengamot mutter at the mention of his family's title.**

Many of the current Blacks looked proud. Sirius grimaced.

"**And each boy is also connected to foreign powers." Marius said. "Care to explain." Madam Bones said.**

Arcturus read ahead and looked shocked at the next lines.

"**The oldest boy, Aries Rowan Black, the son of my client's now deceased younger brother Regulus Black, is the son of Saorise Black nee Quirke.**

"As in the ancient Druid clan?" Charlus asked in shock. "I thought they all died out." Abarax said in shock. "But that doesn't really explain Aries' empathy." Dorea said.

"Who are these Quirkes?" Regulus asked curiously. "They were this ancient Druid family that supposedly died out centuries ago. They were rumored to harness ancient magic." Arcturus explained. Regulus looked shocked as his eyes shifted towards Aries.

"I think it gets explained more in later chapters." Aries said thoughtfully.

**The Quirkes are a prominent Druid family in Ireland that Saorise is a member of and therefore makes Aries Black a member of. While she is in extensive Britsish wizardry medical care my client was named his guardian." Marius said. **

Aries looked up at the ceiling.

**Sirius was glad he and Remus dug through so many papers back at Grimmauld Place before doing this. It was a pain in the neck to do, but he managed to find out more about his mysterious sister in law. **

Regulus looked anxious.

**Not much though, all he found was a marriage certificate and a few drawn up contracts. **

Regulus tried to hide his disappointment, but Sirius noticed it.

**For some reason his brother wanted to keep her past a secret from prying eyes. **

Aries' closed his eyes with a pained look on his face.

**Many wizards were muttering amongst themselves. "In the non-magical world, they are wealthy property owners who make an important contribution to the international brewing and agricultural goods trade." Now the muggle jury was muttering. "In the magical world they supplied many important goods such as wand woods, and potion ingredients."**

Sirius whistled at the impact a supposedly dead clan did.

"**The second oldest, Leo Susumu Black, **

"Susumu?" Sirius asked. Leo pointed towards his mother. "It means to advance or progress." Shizuka explained. Sirius looked thoughtful before grinning. It was a good name to have.

**my client's only child, is the son of the now deceased Shizuka Kagawa Black. Mrs. Black was born into a prominent noble family that dealt with the local religion of many Japanese nationals as well as major international trades such as tourism." **

"Not to mention an amazing person." Remus said with a grin. Shizuka smiled and was being cuddled by a certain animagus.

**Sirius was pleased to see how nervous the Dursleys and their lawyer were getting.**

It was safe to say that everyone in the room felt the same.

"**The Kagawa family is an Ancient and Noble family that supplied the magical world with the removal of magical creatures and the curing of magical ailments or the development of." Sirius wished his brother, wife and friends could see this trial now.**

James clapped Sirius' back as Remus gave him a one armed hug.

"**The youngest boy, Hadrian James Potter, is an orphan and the godson of my client." Many of the magical community were murmuring about Harry now. **

Liliana grimaced.

"**His late father James Potter was a member of the Black family as well as the Potters, who are a noble aristocratic family of equal status as the Blacks. His late mother, Liliana Evangelista, was the sole surviving member of an aristocratic Italian family that had control over a portion of minerals and agricultural goods in the international market. In the magical world, they're a prominent family of healers, and a prominent member of the magical art scene."**

"Really?" Lily asked. Liliana nodded politely.

"**Not only that, he is heralded as The Boy Who Lived as on Halloween night ten years ago, an evil wizard that began a war within the magical community in the attempt to wipe out non magical people in a wide scale genocide for years was stopped. Many speculate that young Mr. Potter's magic had something to do with this evil wizard's down fall as he is the only survivor of the Potter Family massacre."**

Dorea and Charlus sadly hugged each other.

**Sirius looked down in sorrow. Charlus and Dorea took him in and in the end; he couldn't save them either from their deaths either.**

"It's not your fault." Dorea said sadly to a guilty looking Sirius.

"**So the wrongs that the Dursley family committed against these boys are not only despicable to the boys, or to their British family's but it could have severely harmed Britain's international trade market as well as start an international wizarding war." Marius said.**

Many looked shocked at the implication.

**Marius sat down as the murmuring got louder. "Defense." The Judge said. "Your Honors, my clients are also victims in this."**

Many listeners made indignant and outraged noises.

"**They were falsely told that these three boys were the sons of Mrs. Dursley's missing sister Lily Evans, and as such they were taken in. The money you mentioned was given to them for the boy's upbringing." The old man wheezed.**

"But they didn't!" Liliana hissed.

"**My clients took these boys in regardless of their magical ancestry and raised them in their home. They fed them, clothed them and sent them to school." The old man defended uneasily. **

"Barely!" Shizuka shouted angrily. Lily looked down sadly. Harry had a strange look in his eye as he watched Lily carefully.

"**Prosecution you may cross examine." Judge Summerdale said.**

"Please do." Ted said.

"**You claim that they were brought to their home under the pretense of being the sons of Ms. Lily Evans. **

Aries was confused by the emotions Lily Evans was sending off. It was as if she wished she was Harry's mother.

**Do you have documented proof of this?" Marius asked. "This here is a letter of the pretense." The old man said passing the letter to Marius. "You are aware that the man who wrote this letter is currently working as a school Headmaster and not the Ministry." Marius said. **

"DUMBLEDORE!" Many outraged family members roared.

**Sirius ground his teeth. Of course it was Dumbledore.**

"He had no right!" Dorea shouted.

"**His only ministry position is more akin to a bailiff or a judge, not a child welfare employee." Marius explained to the judge before passing the note to Judge Summerdale and Madam Bones. **

"Well that defense went up in flames." Frank said.

"**Madam Bones is this true?" Judge Summerdale asked. "It is. Albus Dumbledore has no jurisdiction over the placement over any children." Madam Bones said as she glared down at the note through her monocle. **

"She's not very fond of him either." Leo said.

**The lawyer was obviously was not expecting that, and he began to look like a sweaty fish. **

Many snorted derisevly.

"**Do you also have any refute for the medical reports?" Marius asked. **

"I don't see how you could." Andromeda said angrily.

**Sirius was sitting there listening to pathetic excuse after pathetic excuse. And each time, more evidence was presented against the Dursleys, including confessions and memories from the boys that made Sirius feel as if he was back in Azkaban.**

Everyone looked at the three. They didn't look at anyone. "We got health checks alongside Sirius." Harry explained thickly.

**When the Dursleys were brought up for questioning, everything went south when their son spilled the beans on them.**

Everyone snorted. Of course the idiot would.

**After several hours of going back and forth between the two sides a verdict was finally being made. **

Many people had a strong sense of where this trial was going.

"**Has the jury reached a verdict?" Judge Summerdale asked. "The Jury finds the Dursleys guilty." The speaker said. "The Wizengamot also finds the Dursleys guilty." Madam Bones said after doing a vote. **

"Talk about a double whammy." Alice said.

"**I hereby find you guilty of child abuse, abduction, domestic servitude, neglect, and theft." The judge said as he brought the gavel down.**

"FINALLY!" Sirius cheered as he and James did a strange victory dance.

**When the trial was done and over with Sirius smiled and felt more at peace knowing that those monsters won't ever hurt his boys again. He apparated back to his house and cheered loudly. "I take it you won." Remus said happily as he closed a novel. **

Remus shared a smile with Sirius. It finally looks like things were going in their favor.

"**You bet!" Sirius said with a grin. "What happened?" Remus asked and Sirius felt his stomach knot. When he had to explain the boy's memories Andromeda got over the summer, it left a bitter taste on his tongue. **

Everyone went gloomy.

**Remus growled as his eyes went feral. "You know Sirius, we should make sure they didn't keep any of the boy's belongings there." Remus said with a devious smile. Sirius smirked.**

Regulus smirked. Hell hath no fury like a determined Sirius Black.

**They apparated there that night after a quick plan session. They saw the house was lit as the Dursleys scrambled inside.**

Moody narrowed his eyes. "They're trying to skip town." The Head Auror growled causing many to grow livid.

"**You want to make the call?" Remus asked. "Nah, you can." Sirius said passing a cell phone to Remus. "Hello police. I would like to report a family trying to escape their convictions right now as we speak." Remus said. "Privet Four Drive in Little Whinning." Remus said. **

"I love you Moony." James said. "And me?" Liliana huffed jokingly. James kissed her soundly and she silently blushed at a smirking James. Lily shot Liliana a dirty look and Harry tightened his fists.

**It took several minutes but as the Dursleys stepped out their front door with several suitcases, the police came in with sirens blaring.**

"Excellent timing." Ted praised.

**Several nosy neighbors came outside to look. "What's going on?" A woman with a hair full of curlers asked. **

"And cue the kicked puppy routine." James and Remus said motioning dramatically at Sirius.

**Sirius wore a sad look on his face as he turned to look at a group of gossipy middle aged women. "Those people are trying to escape their sentences." Sirius said in a believable thin voice. **

"How long did it take you to practice?" Leo asked. "A marauder never reveals his secrets." Sirius said imperiously.

"**Who are you?" A woman with a red bath robe asked. "I'm Aries' uncle, Leo's father and Harry's godfather." He explained in a practiced sad voice.**

"You sly dog." Dorea said with a smirk.

"**What on earth did they do?" A black haired woman asked. "I heard they were Petunia's sister's sons." A large nosed woman asked. Sirius shook his head. "No." He said with a look that made them all look pitifully at him. **

"Tug at their heart string why don't ya?" Frank asked jokingly.

"**The boys, Aries, Leo and Harry are my boys and they abused them while I was wrongly accused of war crimes I never committed overseas." Sirius said.**

"Nice story." McGonagall said. "It sounds like a drama novel." Frank whispered to Barty. Barty chortled a bit.

**They all gasped at him and covered their mouths. **

Several people rolled their eyes.

"**But the Dursleys said the boys were riffraffs." One woman said.**

Leo's eye twitched in annoyance.

**Sirius shook his head. "My boys managed to get away from them by attending a private school that I along with their fathers have attended as children. I managed to get cleared of my false crimes and got my boys back recently." Sirius said.**

"This sounds like a drama show." Ted said. Shizuka and Liliana shared a look that said they wouldn't mind watching a drama like this.

"**I never really did like them." One woman said.**

"Well aren't you two faced?" Narcissa asked.

"**Too pretentious." Another said. **

"Hypocrisy." Regulus deadpanned dryly.

"**Excuse me ladies, but I need to go talk to my friend and the police." Sirius said, before walking away as they continued to gossip.**

"Of course they would. They live for gossip." Leo whined. "Sounds like a majority of Hufflepuff." Aries pointed out. Leo flipped his cousin off. "You two are being ridiculous." Harry sighed as he shook his head.

"**Remus, is everything sorted out?" Sirius asked. "Yes. They should be at the police station within a couple hours." Remus said viciously.**

"Yeesh."

**Sirius and Remus walked out of the neighborhood before apparating back to Sirius' place for a heavy dosage of firewhisky. **

"That's the end." Arcturus said as he closed the book. "I think we should eat." Dorea said. "FOOD." Leo cheered as food materialized onto the table. As they ate they chatted about what happened in the book, and a bit more about themselves.

Harry noticed Remus trying hard to feed Teddy, even if he got lots of food on himself. Harry smiled sadly at the sight and he felt his conviction grow stronger. This was why they were risking all of this. For a better future for everyone.

**{I don't know a whole lot about court systems and how a trial would go, but I used what I did know for this chapter. Feel free to let me know what you think.}**


	7. Chapter 7

**{Okay so I'm going to start incorporating more mythology in my stories from this point on. Please let me know if I butchered a myth or not. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this latest installment of my AU Reading of the Chamber of Secrets.}**

"Who wants to read next?" Arcturus asked. Moody picked up the book and cleared his throat loudly.

**Chapter 7. Voice in the Wall**

Harry shuddered.

**Harry was tired. Wood woke him up at the crack of dawn for quidditch practice. **

Remus and Sirius casted looks at a bashful looking James Potter.

**But shockingly Colin was wide awake. **

"Say what?" Frank asked.

"**Harry! Come look at this!" Colin said excitedly as he held up a picture. It was the picture Aries took of them the other day, after dinner.**

"Is this kid your stalker?" Sirius asked nervously. "Nah, just a fan." Aries said as he ran a hand through his partially braided hair.

**Harry was smiling next to Colin, who was blushing and nervous even in the picture.**

"I'm starting to think Colin has a thing for you Harry." Alice said. Harry had a nervous smile on his face.

"**Some of my classmates helped me develop the picture so that the pictures move!" Colin said excitedly.**

"Where does he find the energy to be that energetic?" Sirius asked. "No idea." Leo answered.

"**That's great Colin." Harry said tiredly. Harry walked out of the common room with Colin tailing him. "You play quidditch right? I've never seen a game before." Colin asked as he carried his big camera.**

"If Hogwarts had a newspaper he would be number one photographer." Leo said. McGonagall looked thoughtful at the suggestion of a school newspaper.

**So along the way Harry tried to lose Colin, and wound up explaining how to play quidditch.**

"He is persistent." Harry said with a chuckle.

**When they got down to the Quidditch pitch, Colin left to 'find a good seat' as Harry wandered sleepily into the Gryffindor quidditch tent.**

"Oh imagine him during a real game." Liliana said. Those from the future shared a look.

**Harry kept yawning as Wood went over diagram after diagram. Fred fell asleep on Angelina's shoulder. **

Septimus shook his head fondly.

"**Any questions?" Wood asked. "Yeah, why couldn't you do this yesterday when we were all awake?" George asked tiredly.**

"Excellent question." Harry said.

**Wood went on saying he was determined to win the Quidditch cup again.**

"He's obsessed." Harry said causing a certain dog and werewolf to turn their heads slowly towards a particular stag.

**They walked outside and Harry heard Colin with his camera clicking. Harry noticed Leo and Aries were out there with Colin, as Ron, Luna and Velvela walked with them towards the pitch. **

Aries' eyes narrowed as he remembered this particular morning.

"**Who is that?" Wood asked. "A Gryffindor." Harry yawned. "Plus some harmless Puffs and Claws." Fred said sleepily.**

Aries huffed and crossed his arms. Leo snorted. "Harmless is definitely not a good adjective for them." Harry said.

"**You sure? They could be spies for the Slytherins." Wood said.**

"Paranoid much?" Ted asked.

"**The Slytherins don't need a spy Ollie." George said.**

Many looked skeptical.

"**Why not?" Wood asked angrily, not liking being called 'Ollie.' "Cause their already here in person." George said pointing behind them. **

Regulus and Lucius looked the most interested out of the Slytherins.

**Sure enough, the entire Slytherin team was their dressed in their quidditch robes. "What're you doing here? I booked the field!" Wood shouted at Flint.**

"He sounds like James." Remus pointed out.

"**Oh, the field is big enough for the two of us. Besides I got permission from Professor Snape to use the field." Flint said nastily.**

"Flint?" many Slytherins asked in disgust. "He's the captain." Aries pointed out.

**Wood took the note and looked angrily at the Slytherins. "You have a new seeker?" Wood demanded. **

Regulus wondered who it could be.

**As Harry's friends stepped by him, Malfoy walked forward with the green Slytherin quidditch robes on. **

Lucius and Narcissa shared a surprised look. "I don't play seeker." Lucius said. "I don't either." James pointed out. Lucius nodded. "Do you play quidditch Aries?" Regulus asked. "He never played at school but he was an excellent seeker when we played." Harry pointed out. Regulus smiled fondly.

"Leo makes a great beater too." Harry pointed out. Sirius and Shizuka grinned at learning more about their son.

"**Aren't you Lucius Malfoy's son?" George asked with narrowed eyes. "Funny you should mention Draco's father, he made a generous donation to our quidditch team." **

Lucius paled slightly.

**Flint said as he showed off his new broom. "Those are Nimbus two thousands and ones!" Ron said in shock.**

Lucius groaned into his hands. "Did I just bribe my son onto the team?" He asked. "He's not bad, he's really good." Harry admitted. Lucius relaxed slightly.

"**Lighter, sleeker and faster. Sweeps the board with your Cleansweeps." Flint said nastily to the twins who were holding Cleansweep Fives.**

Leo narrowed his eyes.

**The whole Slytherin team laughed nastily at the bad joke. **

Everyone grimaced. "So it's those types of Slytherins." Dorea said with a deep frown. Andromeda grimaced.

"**You're just jealous!" Colin squeaked.**

"Wow, Colin." Frank said. "He's the size of Crabbe's neck." Aries pointed out and every student was shocked at the idea.

**Malfoy narrowed his eyes at Colin. "Of what?" Malfoy sneered. "Gryffindor has talented witches and wizards that didn't need to bribe their way onto the team!" Colin defended. **

Lucius frowned and Narcissa held his hand.

**Harry and all of his team mates knew for sure that he was a Gryffindor then.**

"That takes courage, especially from a first year." Charlus said.

"**Watch what you say you filthy little mudblood." Malfoy snapped.**

Many people shouted in anger at the scurrile slur against Colin. Lily frowned sadly and Andromeda wrapped an arm around her husband.

**It was an explosion. "How dare you!" Katie shouted. Flint had to protect Malfoy from Harry and the twins. **

"Good job Harry." James said with a mean look in his eye.

"**What's wrong scarhead, afraid to use a spell?" Malfoy sneered as Harry tried to claw at the blonde.**

Aries and Leo exchanged a knowing look.

**Ron pointed his wand that broke in the crash on the whomping willow at Malfoy. "Eat slugs!" Ron shouted, only for the spell to backfire.**

Septimus frowned and groaned "Oh no."

**Ron started to barf slugs.**

Everyone grimaced in disgust.

**Harry heard Colin click his camera.**

"Really?" Everyone asked.

"**Not now Colin." Harry said quickly. Leo and Aries helped him get Ron up as the Slytherins laughed loudly at Ron. **

Septimus went Weasley red.

**What no one was expecting was for Velvela to walk up to Malfoy who was beating his fist against the ground as he howled with laughter. **

Aries smirked meanly. "What's she gonna do?" Barty asked.

**She kicked him.**

Everyone not from the future was shocked. "But she seems so nice!" Alice said in shock. "You'll see." Leo said as he rested his chin in his hand.

**Malfoy spluttered loudly and everyone watched in shock as she continued to kick and then punch him repeatedly.**

Narcissa looked shocked and teary eyed. Lucius held her comfortably.

**Flint and some other boy the twin's age tried to tear her and Malfoy apart, but she punched and bit them hard enough to stop their attempts.**

Everyone was flabbergasted. "How, she's just a second year!?" Frank blurted.

**Leo ran and grabbed her around the waist as she snarled at Malfoy. She shouted something Harry couldn't understand viciously at Malfoy as she had this crazed look in her eye.**

"She kinda reminds me of an angry Moony." James said. Sirius nodded and Remus ignored them with pinker cheeks as he rocked a sleepy Teddy.

**Leo dragged her backwards as Harry, Aries and Luna walked Ron and Colin away from the pitch and down to Hagrid's hut.**

"That actually hurt." Leo said as he rubbed his arms.

**As they walked down they saw Lockhart in pale mauve robes strutting back their way.**

"UGH." Everyone groaned.

"**I'll send over a signed copy later." Lockhart shouted as they hid in the bushed and Leo had to stop Colin from taking a picture.**

"Not the time." Liliana pointed out.

**They walked towards Hagrid's door Aries knocked furiously. Hagrid opened the door with an annoyed look that quickly disappeared when he saw them. "Come in." He said quickly when he saw Ron and Leo. **

"I felt like a dropped apple." Leo admitted.

**Ron was sitting with a copper basin in his lap as he threw up some more slugs. "Bett'r out than in." Hagrid said. **

"ICK."

**Velvela had calmed down now and looked close to crying.**

"What happened?" McGonagall asked worriedly.

**Leo had several spots that looked like they'll bruise soon from when Velvela was swinging her fists and kicking at everyone who got near her. **

"She was furious." Aries added.

"**What happened?" Hagrid asked. "Well, that one Slytherin boy called me some name." Colin explained. "He called him a mudblood." Aries hissed coldly. "He did no'." Hagrid said in shock. **

Almost everyone grimaced at the slur.

**Colin looked confused. "What does that mean? I know it was rude, and all, but-" **

"It's horrible." Sirius spat.

"**It means dirty blood. Malfoy just called you and you entire family filth." Aries said bitterly. **

Regulus couldn't look his son in the eye.

**Colin looked shocked and so heartbroken then. Luna hugged him gently and petted his mousy hair.**

Xenophilius smiled. "She's a great friend to cheer you up." Harry said kindly.

"**Some people like Malfoy think that just because you come from a completely magical family, it automatically makes you better than everyone else." Ron explained before coughing up a large slug.**

No one said anything, but you can see in their eyes who believed what.

"**It's rubbish." Leo said with a smile, although he winced as he did so.**

"Your too much like your father." Shizuka said with a sad smile. Leo hugged her.

"**There's not even a whole lot of pure blood from Britain left anyway." Harry said thinking back to his time with Sirius.**

"There isn't. I married a foreign witch." Sirius said. "If more people were open to foreign spouses, there would be less inbreeding." Arcturus said. Many nodded. "That's why it's so hard to marry a British pureblood." Abarax said. While they might be pro pureblood, they weren't a fan of the constant inbreeding. It created too many squibs and underdeveloped wizards and witches.

"**And a lot of purebloods don't care, either Colin." Luna said airily. "Really?" He asked. **

"Which is why there's so many half-bloods." James said as he held Liliana's hand.

"**Yeah, Ron, Leo and I are purebloods." Luna said. Colin looked at them in shock. "Really?" Colin asked. "Yeah." Leo said as he gingerly touched a bruise area.**

"Don't care." Leo said.

"**What about the rest of you guys?" Colin asked. "My dad was pureblood and my mum was a half-blood. My grandma was a muggle born like you." Harry explained, causing Colin to smile. **

"That really made him feel better." Aries pointed out.

"**I know my dad was a pureblood, but I'm not sure about my mum." Aries said nonchalantly. **

Regulus frowned. "Does it matter?" Aries asked. Regulus looked in his son's eyes and he couldn't find any words to say. "Of course it does." Bellatrix snapped. "We need to uphold the status of our family." She said.

"I know the Malfoys aren't as strict with blood lineage." Xenophlius said airily. "We accept half-bloods." Abarax said with a wary look at Xenophilius. "How do you know that?" Regulus asked curiously. "I think it gets explained soon." Leo said.

**Velvela was quiet. "Vela?" Ron asked before coughing a small slug. "Half breed." She whispered.**

Everyone was shocked.

"**What's that?" Colin asked. Hagrid looked down at the first year. "Someone in yer family 's no' human." Hagrid explained.**

"Doesn't matter." Leo defended. "Vela's a wonderful person." Aries said with a smile.

"**What are you then?" Colin asked. " My grandfather was an **_**úlfheðnar**_**." Velvela said. "A type of beserker." **

Charlus went slack jawed.

**Aries and Hagrid looked shocked.**

"What's a berserker?" Liliana asked.

"**What's a berserker?" Harry asked.**

Liliana blinked before smiling at her son.

"**A race of shaman like warriors who worshipped Odin. When they entered battle, nothing could stop them from destroying their enemy in a blind rage." Aries said in shock. **

"So that explains why she attacked Draco." Bellatrix said. "Good thing Aries is an empath, he can let you know when she's going to blow." Barty said. Many nodded in agreement

"**But you said your dad was a muggle born and your mum was a half blood." Leo said. **

"It's not uncommon to hide it." Remus said knowingly as Teddy cuddled into his chest.

**Velvela lowered her head. "My dad was the son of an **_**úlfheðnar**_** and a muggle woman. When my dad married my mum he kept her last name." Velvela said as she averted her eyes. **

"Nothing to be ashamed of though." Aries pointed out.

"**Some people lie to keep from being looked down on." Hagrid said knowingly. Leo looked surprised.**

"I never thought that there would be conflict like that in the magical world." Leo admitted.

"**It's worse for half-breeds, as they call 's since they think tha' were mindl'ss monsters." Hagrid said. No one had anything really to say to that. Leo cracked a smile at Velvela though. **

Sirius shared a proud look with Shizuka.

"**It doesn't matter what your ancestry is. All that matters is being a good person." Leo said kindly and Velvela hugged him carefully.**

The marauders shared a smile.

"**So when you get in a fight like earlier, you're going berserk?" Colin asked in wonder.**

"So that's where the term came from." Ted said in realization.

"**Actually, **_**berserkirs**_** are bears, my family is wolf." Velvela explained. "There's different types?" Aries asked curiously as he sat down next to her.**

"Nerd." Leo coughed. Aries shot him a look that read 'What did you say?' Leo just snorted.

Sirius snorted. They really did act more like brothers than cousins.

"**Each berserker as they're called here is essentially a warrior-shaman. They fight with the skills and instincts of their animal in the name of Odin. The two main types are bears and wolves." Velvela explained.**

"Huh, you learn something new every day." Barty said.

"**So earlier you fought like a wolf?" Aries asked with a smile. She looked down. "I guess its pack mentality. When I saw Ron go down, and Malfoy, I just lost it." Velvela explained. **

Sirius and James casted a look at Remus. Remus was holding a sleeping Teddy against his chest.

"**Thanks." Ron said before ducking back into the basin.**

Septimus smiled a bit.

"**You guys are so cool." Colin breathed.**

Harry snorted.

**They all shared a weird look and laughed as if everything was okay.**

Many people shook their heads fondly.

**They wandered back up to the castle and the moment they stepped a foot inside, McGonagall came into view. "Potter, Weasley, a word." She said. She told them that Ron had to clean the trophy room with Filch and Harry had detention with Lockhart. **

"I thought Hogwarts wasn't allowed to use cruel and unusual punishment." James whined. McGonagall sent him a stern look.

"**Professor, please, can't I go with Ron?" Harry begged. "I'm sorry but Lockhart specifically asked for you." She said before walking away.**

"Left me to my doom." Harry muttered.

**Ron and Harry kept complaining about who had it worse. **

"Both are pretty bad." Regulus admitted.

"**Well it could be worse." Leo said during dinner after he got his bruises treated. "What?" Ron and Harry asked in unison. "It could be Snape." Leo said. **

"That would be worse for Harry and Ron." Liliana said thoughtfully.

"**True." Ron admitted. "That would be a nightmare." Harry said.**

"How did Sev become so bitter anyway?" Lily asked with a frown. "I think it explains later on in the book."

**When dinner was done Harry trudged slowly up towards Lockhart's classroom as possible in order to delay the inevitable.**

"If you were Leo you could've wasted the entire detention." Aries pointed out causing Harry to slap his palm against his forhead.

**He knocked on the door. Lockhart opened it his signature flashy smile. "Ah, here's the scalawag." Lockhart said and Harry knew he was in for a long night.**

"Scalawag?" James snorted derisively. "I think even then he was copying you guys." Leo said. The marauders shared a disbelieving look.

"**You can write the addresses on my fan mail." Lockhart said as if this were a treat.**

"I got cramps in my hand after that." Harry complained.

**Harry wrote address after address as he ignored Lockhart. He made some responses like "Mhhmm" and "Yeah" so that Lockhart would think he was really listening. **

"Nicely done." James praised.

**Harry managed to pick up on Lockhart saying some things like "Fame is a fickle friend, Harry" and "Celebrity is as celebrity does."**

"Is he being serious?" Remus deadpanned. "No I am." Sirius said causing everyone to groan.

**Harry was sure he lost brain cells listening to him at those very few moments.  
><strong>"Most likely." McGonagall said.

**Eventually he wrote out another fan girl's address when Harry heard a voice. It was a cold, slithering voice that sent chills up his spine. "Come to me… Come… Let me rip you… Let me tear you… Let me kill you…" **

Lily shrieked. Liliana pulled Harry into her arms. "WHAT THE FUCKING HELL!?" James asked as he paled.

"**What!?" Harry asked in shock. "I know! Six months on the Best Sellers list. A new record!" Lockhart said pompously. **

"Oh you _stronzo!" _Liliana snapped.

"**No, that voice." Harry said. Lockhart looked at him strangely. "What voice? Oh look at the time! It's almost midnight. Time sure flies by." Lockhart said as he excused Harry.**

"He didn't hear THAT!?" Sirius demanded to know. Harry shook his head.

**Harry walked out shakily. He slid down a cold stone wall as he heard the voice again. "Must kill… Must feed… Tear… Rip… Free…" Harry shuddered as he ran down the hall. **

"Please tell me you find a competent Professor." Dorea asked anxiously.

**Eventually he ran down the hall and ran into Leo.**

Sirius and Shizuka looked worriedly at their son.

"**Leo, what're you doing here?" Harry asked.**

"Good question." Regulus said as he casted a look at his nephew.

**Leo shook badly as he watched the walls, completely terrified. **

Leo shuddered at a memory.

**Harry noticed how Leo's eyes glowed silver and it was rather eerie in the dim hall. **

Leo gave Harry a halfhearted look of offence.

"**There's something in the walls…" Leo whispered sacredly. "Something massive." Leo shook as he said this.**

Everyone was nervous. "IN the walls?" Frank asked after a swallow. Leo didn't answer him.

**Harry hugged Leo tightly. "I think we need to talk to Sirius." Harry said. **

Sirius gave a wry smile.

**Leo nodded and Leo led Harry down towards the kitchens. In a nook on the right of the kitchen Leo dragged Harry down by a stack of barrels. Leo tapped a barrel second from the bottom in the middle row to the rhythm of 'Helga Hufflepuff.' **

"So that's the way in." James said with a smirk. Leo shrank in his seat a bit.

**A passage way appeared and Harry followed Leo down. The common room had an earthy feel to it with the low ceilings and round windows that showed dandelions and fresh grass. There were a lot of copper furnishings and plants on various shelves. **

Ted and Leo smiled fondly at the description of their common room.

**Harry sat down on an overstuffed black and yellow couch as he waited for Leo to come back down. Harry was examining a copper lamp as Leo clambered back down and sat shakily next to Harry.**

Leo looked down at his mother's comforting hug.

**Leo was holding a mirror that belonged to Sirius. Harry got his dad's and Sirius and Remus made one for Aries so that they could communicate with each other. **

"Oh, our two-way mirrors!" James said. "Two-way mirrors?" Regulus asked curiously. "Yeah, we made those so we could communicate instantly." James said.

"**Sirius." Leo said nervously. Then Sirius' face came on the glass.**

"Very useful." Charlus said with a nod.

**He was smiling brightly at them. "Harry, Leo, how're you boys doing?" Sirius asked. "Not good Sirius." Harry admitted. Sirius frowned and looked at them in concern.**

"If we were in the same room he'd probably march us back home." Harry said. James and Remus snorted a bit.

"**What's wrong boys?" Sirius asked. "There's something here. In the school." Leo said nervously. "I heard it. It wants to kill." Harry said as he paled. Sirius immediately looked panicked. **

"Can't I just send you boys to a different school?" Sirius asked as he ran a hand down his face.

"**You heard it?" Sirius asked in concern. "Did anyone else hear it too?" Harry shook his head. "Did you boys see it?" Sirius asked. "Sort of. I saw its aura." Leo said anxiously. "What was it?" Sirius asked. **

"Well you're handling this really well." Dorea said proudly.

"**A large red streak in the walls." Leo said. "In the walls?" Sirius asked. "I saw it slide inside the walls." Leo confirmed. **

"So some big, slithering thing was inside the walls and it could talk." Regulus said thoughtfully. The three from the future groaned for some reason.

**Sirius furrowed his brows. "I'll try to get the Board of Governors on this. Something isn't right at Hogwarts." Sirius said with a frown.**

"Definitely not with Dumbledore acting as he has." Charlus said bitterly as he narrowed his eyes.

"**Now, let me know the next time this happens okay boys. And let Aries know too. He should know that something is there." Sirius said.**

Leo and Harry shifted their eyes towards Aries uncomfortably.

"**By the way Harry, I'll come by for your quidditch games." Sirius said with a warm grin that made Harry feel better. **

Sirius grinned. He was glad he was there for the boys now.

"**Now you two need to go to bed." Sirius said with a bark like laugh.**

"You have become a parent Pads." James said solemnly.

"_**Oyasumi."**_** Leo said. "**_**Oyasumi. **_**Good night." Sirius said kindly before he went off the mirror.**

"This time around I'll teach you more." Shizuka said as she hugged her son more.

**Leo and Harry exchanged good nights and Leo went back upstairs. Harry walked out of the Hufflepuff common room and back up towards Gryffindor tower.**

James crossed his fingers.

**And there was no voice to be heard as he walked back to his red and gold bed. **

James sighed in relief. "Next chapter." Moody growled as he closed the book.

**{So for the Malfoys and half-blood thing I learned that from Pottermore. Fun fact: Velvela is a Yiddish name meaning 'wolf.' Her dad's name, Zeff, is also a Yiddish name meaning 'wolf.'}**


	8. Chapter 8

"Who's next?" Moody growled. McGonagall picked up the book.

**Chapter 8. Second Skill**

"Still confusing." Frank muttered.

**Leo was a nervous wreck the next day. He made especially sure to stay as far away from walls as possible. **

"Paranoid much?" James asked. Leo ignored his father's best friend with a very manly blush.

**He couldn't find the behemoth in the walls and he was relieved. He was glad it was gone. **

Everyone else did too, except for Moody and those from the future.

**Earlier on the way to breakfast he and Velvela ran into Ron's sister Ginny. "Hey." Leo greeted. She just stared at him weirdly and marched off towards the Gryffindor table.**

Septimus frowned and Harry scoffed.

"**Well that was rude." Velvela huffed. **

"Yes it was." Shizuka agreed.

"**She doesn't like me I guess." Leo said with a shrug as he walked down to Aries and Luna at the Ravenclaw table. "Aries we gotta talk later." Leo whispered in Aries' ear.**

Leo and Aries shared a smile.

"**Why don't you join us?" Luna offered. **

Xenophilius had a fond look in his dazed eyes.

**Leo smiled and sat down with her and Aries. "I'm gonna head to our table. See you at lunch." Velvela said before going to sit down with Susan and Hannah.**

"I'm glad you boys can still be normal kids with all this." Dorea said fondly.

**He was so nervous he wasn't his usual chipper self despite it being Halloween.**

Aries began to hum a tune that Leo and Harry recognized as 'This is Halloween' from The Nightmare Before Christmas.

**During lunch he made sure to get extra helping of pumpkin stuff. He went through his classes munching on roasted pumpkin seeds the kitchen elves shared with him. **

"They love it here." McGonagall said with a smile.

**He got lost several times and wound up in the kitchen and made friends with the house elves. **

Sirius shook his head fondly, and Shizuka smiled.

**There was a motherly house elf named Bitsy who would always give him snacks when he wandered in before helping him back to his common room.**

"Oh, I've met her. She's a sweet little house elf." Ted said warmly.

**He made sure to share with Velvela and their friends.**

Shizuka and Dorea nodded.

**Velvela stayed behind to ask Professor McGonagall about their latest homework assignment when Leo noticed something. **

"What?" many people asked in confusion.

**He saw Ginny, and he was wondering if she was sick since she looked a bit pale. **

Septimus looked a bit worried for his granddaughter.

**Then he noticed someone walking behind her. He was older, maybe a bit older than Percy. He was pale with neatly combed jet black hair and dark eyes. **

McGonagall's eyes narrowed at the familiar description. Harry and Aries had a violent look in their eyes at the description and Leo shuddered.

**Leo snuck out and followed them. He didn't know why, but something felt odd about that sixth year boy.**

"You have no idea." Harry muttered to himself.

**Leo followed them around a corner and he lost sight of Ginny. But that sixth year was still there. **

"Who is this guy?" Barty asked.

**Leo walked up to him. "Hello?" He asked. The older boy ignored him. **

Arcturus rolled his eyes.

"**Hey, why're you following Ginny?" Leo asked and the boy looked down at him in shock. Leo noticed the Slytherin crest on his robes.**

"What's he doing?" James asked curiously.

"**Who're you?" The older boy asked smoothly.**

Shizuka hummed a little.

"**Leo Black." He replied. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Leo," The older Slytherin said politely "My name is Tom."**

"He seems polite." Lily said with a smile. McGonagall, Augusta and Dorea shared a confused look.

**Leo looked up at Tom. He didn't recognize him, but he was several years older than him. **

"Hogwarts is a big school." Liliana said.

"**Pleased to me you too." Leo said with a polite smile. "Ginerva wasn't feeling well so I was showing her to the nearest bathroom." Tome explained calmly. **

"That was nice of him." Bellatrix said.

"**Oh!" Leo said in recognition. "That's awfully nice of you Tom." Leo said with a grin.**

Leo frowned a bit.

**Tom gave him a small smile. "Are you a friend of Ginvera's?" Tom asked. "I'm friends with her older brothers." Leo said. **

"Some of the best friends you can ever ask for." Harry said with a strong look in his eyes.

**Tome nodded. "It's good to know you were wondering about her." Tom said. "I best go check on her. Why don't you head back to dinner?" Tom asked kindly. Leo grinned and nodded before walking back where he came. **

"A personal best." Aries stage whispered causing a round of chuckles.

**He managed to find Neville who steered him back the rest of the way to the Great Hall.**

"How do you go anywhere with that awful sense of direction?" Narcissa asked. "I'm better now, but I still get lost." Leo admitted as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"**Harry, Ron and Aries are going to Nick's death day party." Neville explained. Leo nodded at his friend. **

Harry and Aries shuddered. "Rotten food. Ghosts. No dinner." Aries whined.

**He, Velvela, Luna and Neville ate dinner at the Gryffindor table. Neville and Luna were talking about the gardens Mr. Lovegood had at Luna's house. **

Xenophilius sent a kind albeit ditzy look towards the Longbottoms and Alice.

**Velvela and Leo were talking about their upcoming Astrology lesson.**

"Normality." Leo sighed in longing.

**After dinner Leo blinked and he saw it. A large red shape sliding across the wall.**

Everyone tensed.

"**Neville, where's Nick's death day being held?" Leo asked. When Neville pointed in the direction the red was shifting towards Leo bolstered whatever courage he could and ran after it. **

Sirius and Shizuka began to panic.

**He ran as fast as he could, but he wound up slipping in the water that pooled on the floor and wound up soaked. As he wiped the water off of his face, he looked up and saw something horrible.**

McGonagall paled at the next couple of lines.

**On the walls there was blood. The blood said. 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir beware.' And near him was Mrs. Norris. She was rigid and stiff.**

Shizuka pulled Leo into her arms and Sirius was trying to breathe evenly.

**Leo crawled backwards as he was trying not to panic. **

His mother made no such attempts.

**That's when Ron, Harry and Aries came running in. Aries sunk down into the puddle and held Leo by his shoulders. "Leo? Leo what happened?" Aries asked in concern.**

"That was a sight I don't ever wanna see again." Aries muttered.

**Leo shook a bit, and shortly after a crowd of people came in.**

Every Hogwarts student rolled their eyes.

"**Enemies of the Heir beware. You'll be next mudbloods." Draco said coldly before slipping out of the crowd. Leo looked up at him and knew he needed to give his second cousin a piece of his mind. **

Lucius and Narcissa did well with ignoring the dirty looks they were sent.

"**What's going on?" Mr. Filch asked as he made his way through the crowd. Filch took one look at Mrs. Norris and set his eyes on Leo. "You murdered my cat!" He shouted as he stomped over to Leo and Aries. "I'LL KILL YOU!" The man shouted as he raised a fist.**

The room exploded with anger (and two crying toddlers).

**As all the students shouted and yelled, Dumbledore came in before the caretaker could land a blow. **

Ted and Remus were grumbling as they were trying to console a crying toddler.

"**Argus." Dumbledore said. Filch backed away. Aries ignored the man, and soon Fred and George kneelt down by Leo and glared fiercely at Filch.**

"This was not a good year for me." Leo whispered to Aries who snorted.

**Lockhart was babbling about how Mrs. Norris died only for Dumbledore to explain that the cat was only petrified.**

"This moron." Many groaned.

**Lockhart faltered a bit. "Ah, of course. I can whip up an Unpetrification Potion easily-" "Excuse me, but I believe that I am the Potions Master of this school." Snape sneered. **

"I hate to admit it, but Snape got him good there." James said with a scrunched expression. Lily looked a bit smug and Harry narrowed his eyes ever so slightly at the witch.

"**But it would seem that Mr. Black here is just victim of being at the wrong place at the wrong time." Snape said and Leo was wondering what he had planned. "Although it begs the question why he ran out of the Great Hall to here." Snape said.**

Sirius was back to grumbling scurrile things about the man again.

**Aries glared at their Potions Professor frigidly. **

"Sorry he's immune." Regulus said.

"**I forgot to get a book from Aries and got lost." Leo lied without batting an eye.**

"Nicely done." Sirius and James praised.

"**He has some of the worst sense of direction out of all of us!" Susan defended. "He still gets lost on the way to the common room!" Justin shouted. **

"Hufflepuff loyalty." Ted grinned. Leo smiled at the man.

**Snape sneered at them all. "It seems that Leo here was just unlucky." Dumbledore said softly. **

"I don't trust the goat." Arcturus said tonelessly.

**Soon they all walked off and back to their common rooms. Except for the Black cousins, Harry, Velvela, Neville and the three Weasleys. **

Everyone rolled their eyes at the expectation.

"**Why did you run?" Aries asked. "Something is here. And whatever it is it petrified Mrs. Norris." Leo said lowly. **

"Next time run the other way." Shizuka chided.

**The twins shared a grim look. "That would have to be something pretty nasty." Fred said with a grimace.**

Harry grimaced and rubbed his arm.

"**We told Sirius about this, and he said he'll try to get the Board of Governors on this." Harry said hopefully. That lightened the mood considerably.**

"Since when were you Mr. Sunshine?" Leo joked. "Since when were you Captain Obvious?" Harry retorted.

**They all left and hoped that Sirius could get help that could deal with this soon. **

"Most likely." Regulus said with a half-smile.

**The next day Aries pulled him aside before going to go get breakfast. "What happened? You saw it in the walls again?" Aries asked. Leo figured Harry told him and Ron about that night. **

"I did." Aries clarified.

**Leo nodded causing Aries to grimace. "Well it hasn't killed anyone like Harry heard so we should be okay for now." Aries said with a puzzled look on his face. **

"What were you thinking about?" Barty asked. Aries held a finger to his lips in the 'shh' gesture.

"**Ree?" Leo asked. Aries shook his head as Tawny crawled onto his shoulder.**

"I completely forgot about her." Alcie said sheepishly. Aries chuckled fondly.

"**How has she not been eaten by now?" Leo asked. Aries swatted his arm before they walked in for breakfast wearing identical smirks as they sat down at Gryffindor table. **

"More like twins." Harry muttered.

"**By the way, what was with all the water?" Leo asked.**

"I was wondering about that too." Andromeda said.

**He had to get Cedric's help spelling that dry.**

Leo smiled a bit.

"**Moaning Myrtle." Aries, Ron and Harry intoned.**

Lily and Alice groaned in annoyance.

"**Who?" Leo asked. "She haunts the girl's bathroom." Luna said airily. **

"She makes a lot of noise." Alice added. Leo nodded.

"**So I found out that Filch is a squib." Harry said as he bit into some toast. "Really?" Leo asked. "Yeah, he has this subscription for squibs." Harry said.**

"So that's why he's a total jerk to us." Frank said.

**Ron sniggered a bit. "Well that's nothing to laugh about." Aries huffed. **

"It isn't." Septimus said.

"**No, it's just that that's why he hates all of us. He's bitter." Ron explained and Leo's eyes rounded in realization.**

"It is a bit strange thinking back on it." Harry admitted.

"**Our family has a few squibs." Aries said thoughtfully.**

"Yeah, they get blasted off the family tree." Sirius said with a frown.

"**Mine too. My mum's second cousin he's the same as Filch, bitter. Won't talk to us." Ron explained as he piled food onto his plate.**

Alice sighed.

**As they ate they heard about how Filch was guarding the crime scene and gave detentions for 'breathing too loudly' and 'looking too happy.'**

"Jeez."

**Ginny was distraught and Ron explained how it was since she's a cat lover. **

Sirius scoffed and Shizuka started to scratch Sirius behind one of his ears. Sirius began to pant and thump his leg eagerly. That got a good laugh out of everyone.

**Percy was checking over her. **

Septimus nodded.

**After breakfast Leo slipped away and called after Draco. He got stopped by Blaise instead. "What do you want Black?" Blaise asked coldly. "To give that cousin of mine a piece of my mind for what he said!" Leo growled. **

Sirius nodded fiercely.

**Blaise didn't move. "Why do you care what he says?" Blaise asked. "It was horrible and bigoted!" Leo snapped. "Doesn't most of your family think the same way?" Blaise asked, and Leo faltered and Blaise walked away.**

There was a bit of grumbling from both sides.

**Leo trudged through his first lessons feeling a bit down. Thankfully Velvela cheered him up with some quick hand games she taught him.**

Aries smiled warmly.

**Something strange that Leo noticed was that all the Hufflepuffs were a bit more concerned with him after Filch's outburst.**

Everyone looked curiously at Leo.

**Most of the older ones keep an eye on him in the halls and the ones around his age keep shooting ugly looks at the caretaker. In fact Velvela refuses to leave Leo's side if he has to go past Filch's spot.**

"I can take care of myself." Leo huffed.

**Leo felt as stir crazy as he was when he was bed ridden last year.**

"Thankfully it wasn't that bad." Harry said seriously.

**During lunch Aries came in lugging his large copy of Hogwarts a History as Leo sat down with his friends at Gryffindor table.**

Moody nodded his approval.

"**Here it is! The Chamber of Secrets!" Aries crowed and several students crowded around to listen.**

Everyone had looks of realization on their faces.

"'**When Hogwarts was newly built there was a conflict amongst the founders. Salazar Slytherin fought with Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff on the student admission. Slytherin wanted only magical born children to attend Hogwarts, while the others were open to students of all backgrounds and ancestries. In retaliation, Slytherin built a secret chamber known as the Chamber of Secrets. Inside the Chamber was a monster only he and his heirs could control.'" Aries said in shock.**

Everyone looked disturbed by the passage.

**Everyone began to murmur around Leo and cast suspicious glances at the Slytherin table. **

Every Slytherin huffed.

**Leo casted a look at Draco, but his second cousin didn't notice him.**

"I wanted to let him know I wanted a word." Leo clarified.

"**So someone here is Slytherin's heir." Ron trailed off. "And they set the monster loose." Harry said with a frown.**

"What was Dumbledore doing?" Abarax asked coldly and gloom spread over the listeners.

**Leo felt his stomach turn. Most of his classmates are muggle borns. He hopes they'll find this monster soon.**

Sirius crossed his fingers.

**Leo was talked into going to the after class dueling club.**

Leo gestured towards Harry and Aries.

**Velvela and Neville opted not to go. **

"Neville's forgetfulness." Augusta sighed. "And Vela's beserkerness." Aries said.

**Luna declined saying she was going to find butterbeer caps to make a wrackspurt protection charm. **

"Oh, excellent!" Xenophilius cheered.

**What Leo was not expecting was for the club to be run by Snape and Lockhart. **

"UGH."

**Aries tugged secretly at Leo and Harry's sleeves. "Remember no parseltongue, no auras and no empathy." Aries whispered. Papa told them to keep these skills they had a secret for a bit longer until they had better control over them to keep people from taking advantage of what they can do.**

"Good advice." Arcturus said to his oldest grandson.

**Leo ignored Lockhart's flowery speech and was busy thinking of good pranks for him. Maybe he could shave his head and break his teeth? Or paint his robes black?**

Everyone laughed, the Marauders doing so the hardest.

**Snape wound up pairing them up. Harry and Draco, Ron and Goyle, Aries and Crabbe, and Leo with Blaise. **

"This will end badly." Charlus said.

**Harry and Draco were up first. They raised their wands and ignored Lockhart's instructions to disarm only.**

"Of course." Dorea and Abarax snorted.

**Harry and Draco kept knocking each other back and forth. "Serpensortia!" Draco shouted and he conjured a king cobra. **

Sirius and James paled a bit.

**The cobra slithered up to Justin and Lockhart succeeded in pissing the snake off.**

"He launched the thing overhead." Harry clarified.

**The snake was looking ready to strike and Leo hoped Harry could keep his mouth shut.**

"Oh ye of so little faith."

**Harry didn't start hissing thankfully. What Harry did though was shout "NO" and when the snake lunged at Justin, it couldn't bite him. It was as if the snake kept hitting a thick pane of glass.**

Charlus and James sent Harry shocked looks.

**Leo looked around but no one was casting a shield.**

Everyone was confused and looking at the stock still Potter family.

**Snape got rid of the snake by burning it to ash.**

"ICK."

**Justin never looked more relieved than he did now.**

Everyone relaxed a bit more.

**Aries pulled Harry outside. Leo stood next to them. "What was that!?" Aries asked. "I don't know. I just didn't want Justin to get hurt and then that happened." Harry explained.**

"It gets explained later." Harry said to the confused looks he was getting.

**Leo looked between the two of them. He might not be an empath, but he knew that Aries was worried and Harry was clueless. **

"You two are easy to read." Leo muttered fondly.

"**Why don't you two go talk to Papa about this?" Leo suggested.**

"Good idea." Regulus said.

"**Luns." Leo said.**

Leo smiled a bit.

**Aries and Harry walked past Leo and Leo walked back towards where he thought he would find them. **

Shizuka shook her head fondly.

**Leo was frustrated at his lack of direction. He started to kick at the air. **

"You're doing better than Pads." "OI!"

"**What's wrong Leo?" A cool voice asked. Leo turned around and it was Tom again.**

Lily smiled. She liked the way this Tom fellow sounded.

"**Oh, hiya." Leo said. "What's wrong?" Tom asked with a slight frown. **

"Many things." Aries joked and Leo swatted his arm.

"**I have no sense of direction." Leo admitted with a hung head. "Well the Great Hall is down that corridor so you're getting better." Tom said with a smile.**

That's nice of him." Lily said. Harry rolled his eyes at her words.

**Leo looked up at the older boy and smiled. "Thanks Tom." Leo said warmly.**

Leo frowned a bit.

**Tom nodded slightly. "You best be going, your friends are probably waiting for you." Tom said. **

"We probably need more Slytherins like him." Barty said.

**Leo nodded and walked away after waving at him. Leo actually made it to the Great Hall and was ecstatic. Maybe not all Slytherins were bad, he thought. **

"They're not." Leo said with a confident look in his grey eyes as McGonagall closed the book.


	9. Chapter 9

Remus picked the book up as Teddy was napping against his shoulder. Teddy yawned a bit as his hair turned brown with pink tips.

**Chapter 9. Talking to No One**

Alice was confused.

**Aries was busy doodling in Lockhart's class.**

"He thought I was taking notes." Aries snorted. Regulus smirked and rolled his eyes at his son's antics.

**After the pixie fiasco with Harry's class, Lockhart just started making us read aloud from his books. **

"So nothing then." Lucius sneered.

**Aries snorted and didn't even bother to pull them out of his dorm room anymore.**

"How did you learn?" McGonagall asked the boys. Leo and Harry pointed at Aries. "I went through the library and Uncle's old school books." Aries said as he tied his hair back.

**The books were stupid.**

"Obviously." Everyone intoned.

**You can't make a vampire eat lettuce and there is currently no cure for Lycanthropy despite Lockhart's claims of doing those.**

"Aries was working on the cure though." Harry said. Remus looked at him in shock. "Really?" He asked. "Project Lupin. He was working with several other healers in various countries trying to figure it out." Leo said. Remus smiled at Aries.

"So when did you guys learn about Remmy's furry little problem?" James asked. "He told us over the summer after we moved in with Sirius." Harry said. "You're kinda bad at keeping that a secret Moony." Leo said causing the werewolf to blush.

Remus was pulled out of his thoughts by Teddy nuzzling his collarbone.

**Aries looked up and saw Terry grow frustrated as he was chosen to reenact one of the more dramatic parts with Lockhart.**

"That's always me." Harry pointed out. "I had to be a damsel in distress." Leo pointed out with a grimace. "I was a reporter." Aries said. "I was a werewolf." Harry added causing the Marauders to chuckle.

**When Lockhart turned his back Aries sneakily aimed his wand at him. "Oppungo." He whispered dully and soon Lockhart was being attacked by his own books.**

"BRILLIANT!" Sirius cheered.

**Everyone laughed loudly as Lockhart ran out screaming. **

"He screams like nails on a chalk board." Aries said as he rubbed his ears at the memory.

**When Lockhart crawled out of the classroom, Aries stood on his desk with a cold smirk on his lips. He bowed to the applause of his classmates.**

He stood up and gave a sweeping bow as his emerald robe hung off of one shoulder.

**When Aries and Leo had to go to potions later they ran into Hermione.**

"She's not all that bad." Harry said.

"**Hiya, Hermione." Leo greeted. She smiled back at them.**

A lot of people were relieved to see Hermione loosen up around the boys.

"**Hi." He said kindly. "How're your lessons going?" Leo asked. "Excellent. I plan to go look for some more interesting books in the library." Hermione said. Aries smiled a bit at her as they walked away. **

"Major improvement over last year." Bellatrix noted. Harry, Aries and Leo nodded.

"**She's not too bad once you get to know her better, I guess." Leo said.**

Sirius snorted at his son's eloquence.

**Aries nodded. "I guess she just needed a bit of help opening up." Aries mused as they walked down to the dungeons.**

"Yup." Everyone agreed.

**Snape droned on about the Polyjuice potion.**

"Why? They won't be learning how to brew it." Liliana said.

**Aries and Leo sat next to each other, not too far from Velvela and Susan. "Do you think Uncle would know more about the Chamber?" Aries asked Leo in a hushed tone.**

"Sorry, I don't." Sirius said. "But McGonagall was a seventh year back when it opened." Dorea noted. "Really?" Leo asked in surprise. The Transfiguration professor nodded.

**Leo shrugged and flicked his eyes back to Snape who had his back turned. **

Moody rolled his eyes.

**When they had started brewing a pepper-up potion Leo had this smirk on his face that Aries found contagious. **

It apparently worked on Sirius and Regulus.

**Snape began to prowl around the classroom as per usual. When he passed by Aries and Leo with an ugly sneer, Leo tapped Aries foot. **

Sirius and James looked especially interested at what they had planned for Snivellus.

**When Snape walked past them again Leo pulled a wet start firecracker he got from Fred and George out of his bag. **

Sirius was at the edge of his seat in anticipation.

**Leo licked his fingers and pinched the fuse. BANG! The fire cracker went off with an array of colors. **

"Nice." James praised.

**Thankfully Snape couldn't figure out what direction it came from since the fire cracker whirled around and eventually sizzled on his large hooked nose. Snape left grumbling as he stomped over to the hospital wing. **

Aries and Leo gave dramatic bows from their seats.

**During lunch Leo kept chatting with Ron about the today's quidditch match. It was Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. **

James and Regulus shared a competitive look.

**Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff wanted Gryffindor to win this match. Aries saw Harry and walked up towards him. **

"I think I remember what happens next." Leo said.

"**You excited?" Aries asked kindly.**

Harry smile at him.

**As they walked Harry bumped into someone. It was Daphne Greengrass, a second year Slytherin. The books she was holding flopped onto the floor. **

"Oh, that's interesting." Abarax said.

**Harry knelt down and picked them up for her.**

"You freaking gentleman." Aries snorted.

"**Sorry Daphne." Harry said with a polite smile. She blinked in surprise and nodded her thanks at Harry.**

Charlus and Doea shared a smile.

**Aries and Harry sat down with the rest of their friends at Gryffindor table.**

"We usually go there." Leo said.

**Everyone was buzzing about the match.**

Several people nodded.

**Aries noticed a pale Ginny staring straight at Harry.**

Harry tried not to roll his eyes.

**Velvela noticed that too. "Why's she staring?" She asked. Ron pulled a face. "She has this massive crush on Harrikins." Leo snorted.**

"Awkward." Many teenagers intoned.

**Harry looked at her and briefly waved. She went bright red and looked away. **

James chuckled a bit.

**That's when Colin showed up. "Harry! I got a whole new roll of film! I can't wait to see you play." Colin said giddily. **

Liliana smiled.

**Harry smiled at Colin. "That's wonderful Colin." Velvela said happily. Colin looked at Velvela briefly. "Are you Harry's girlfriend?" Colin asked.**

"Nope. She's someone else's girl." Harry said.

**Everyone spluttered a bit. "N-No, just friends." Harry said.**

"You should have used that as a prank." Sirius whined. "James did." Remus pointed out as Teddy woke up and began to squirm around Remus' lap. "Really?" Harry asked. "When I got over my crush on Evans in first year Sirius made a bet that I couldn't keep it up 'til graduation." James said awkwardly.

No one seemed to notice Lily's brief look of sadness.

"**Oh." Colin crowed. "Do you have a girlfriend?" Colin asked. "No. Just good friends." Harry said. Colin grinned before scampering off to get some food.**

Leo wagged his eyebrows at Harry and the green eyed teen shoved him playfully.

**Aries couldn't help but be excited for another one of Harry's quidditch games. But he was still feeling a bit apprehensive about what happened at the Dueling Club. **

"What was that?" Liliana asked. "Later." Harry said awkwardly.

**When Harry and Aries contacted Uncle Sirius, he didn't have much of an answer either.**

Charlus and James shared a look.

**While he was magically adopted**

"Magically adopted?' Arcturus asked in shock. Dorea nodded. "What's a magical adoption?" Ted asked. "Basically when a family's magic accepts another witch or wizard by magically including them into the family. Usually it's done when the children are very young." Augusta said.

"So that's why Sirius was allowed to use magic outside of school." Lily said in realization. Sirius blushed a bit.

**by Harry's grandparents, he knew that Harry's dad and granddad were hiding something. **

"You know we don't mean anything by it." Charlus said in a warm, fatherly tone. "I know. Family stuff sticks to blood." Sirius said with a half-hearted grin. Dorea hugged him and Sirius smiled sadly.

**Uncle Sirius shared what he knew with them.**

Leo grinned at his father.

**He said that most old pureblood families had a form of family magic. For the Blacks it was Metamorphmagi, like Auntie Andy's daughter Tonks. **

"Yeah. The trait's been dormant for generations." Regulus pointed out.

**Harry's mum's family, the Evangelistas were parselmouths.**

Liliana nodded. "My brothers and Nanna are." She explained. "Wait your family hasn't been attacked yet?" Aries asked. "No." She said. "We can save your family too!" James said in realization.

Charlus and Dorea shared a determined look. "We won't let you lose your family Lana." Dorea said protectively. Liliana smiled appreciative of their paln.

**Auntie Shizu's family had the aurua-mediumship thing.**

She huffed a bit and Sirius gave her a chaste kiss.

**And it's safe to guess that Aries got his empathy from his mother's family.**

Regulus nodded even if he was still curious about his future wife.

**Uncle Sirius said he would look more into it and hopefully he could give them all an answer.**

Charlus and James shared a secretive glance.

**That's when Moony came on the glass and suggested that they try to figure out how it happened so that they could figure out what happened and why.**

"Always the brains of our operations." James said.

**Aries spent half his nights thinking over what he saw that day. He kept going through book after book to narrow down his list of theories. He was sure if he kept this up he was going to have nightmares about the old dusty tomes he managed to read. **

"You know that you can tone the shit down right?" Leo asked. Aries swatted his cousin's shoulder.

**He was stuck between accidental magic and Harry managing to control a snake without needing to use parseltongue.**

Harry shook his head. "NO SPOILING!" The unknown voice shouted causing everyone to jump.

**He was leaning more towards accidental magic but he can't shake this feeling about the magic. For some reason it felt familiar to Aries.**

James and Charlus shared a confused look.

**When he asked Leo about it he didn't get much of an answer since he wasn't using his sixth sense. Sirius called it "other vision" a term he coined with Auntie Shizu when he found out about it. **

Sirius smirked at a sighing Shizuka.

**Shortly after Harry had to leave for the game. Soon they all ate and everyone was rushing out the door. **

"Hopefully you guys get a good set of seats." Frank said.

**Aries and Leo caught up with Ron, Neville, Velvela and Luna. "Luna where's your shoes?" Aries asked. "They're missing." Luna said as she rocked back on her bare feet. **

"Weird." Septimus muttered.

"**You want to borrow a pair of mine?" Velvela asked. **

Xenophilius smiled. He was glad his daughter had caring friends.

**Luna smiled and shook her head. "This feels rather nice actually." Luna said airily. **

Xenophilius laughed airily.

**As they walked Aries frowned a bit. He knew the other girls didn't like her much, but if they were bullying Luna, Aries would make sure they know not to mess with his friend.**

"That's very kind of you." Xenophilius said. Aries smiled and nodded.

**As they walked up to the stands Aries heard a group of older girls gossiping. "Look!" One said giddily.**

"Ugh, Lockhart fans." Sirius complained.

"**He's so handsome, tall, dark, and mysterious." Another girl swooned. **

"Okay not Lockhart." Regulus said.

"**I wonder if he'd talk to us." A third said. **

"Probably not." Lucius drawled.

**Aries looked ahead and was momentarily shocked and Leo spluttered. The girls were ogling Uncle Sirius.**

Shizuka chuckled at Sirius' expression. James and Remus were laughing themselves silly. Even Teddy started to laugh with Remus.

**Neville waved his arm and shouted "Mr. Black!" **

"Yes?" Aries and Leo asked. Everyone snorted.

**Uncle Sirius noticed Neville and walked towards them with a smile. "Kids!" Uncle said as he picked Aries and Leo up and hugged them. "Nice to meet you again Mr. Black." Velvela said kindly.**

"She's like a female Moony." Sirius stage whispered.

**Uncle Sirius snorted. "Call me Sirius. When I hear Mr. Black I keep looking for my father or Professor McGonagall." Sirius said.**

There was a small chuckle from the group.

**Ron and Neville chuckled. "C'mon, let's get some good seats!" Uncle Sirius said happily as he ushered them up to the stands. **

"Eager much?" James asked with a smirk.

**They all got a good view from their seats.**

Everyone smiled a bit.

**Aries was surprised how he wasn't feeling sick yet. He felt the crystal on the necklace he found in his Da's chest grow colder. Aries smiled. He guessed the crystal was blocking the emotions. **

"What is that crystal?" Regulus asked. "Amethyst." Aries answered. Andromeda nodded. "It's used to help with clearing one's mind and balancing emotions and psyche." She said.

**Soon Madam Hooch blew the whistle and they were off. They cheered when they saw Harry, Uncle Sirius being the loudest.**

Remus rubbed an clapped his small hands and giggled cutely in Remus' lap.

**They all were shocked when Harry narrowly missed a bludger, despite being the highest flyer. **

Liliana looked nervous.

**One of the twins hit the bludger towards Pucey, only for it to boomerang back towards Harry. **

Everyone paled.

"**WHAT!?" Uncle Sirius shouted over the crowd. It kept happening, the bludger kept aiming for Harry. **

James looked nervously at his son as Liliana started to panic slightly.

**The twins kept saving Harry much to Aries' relief, when they took a time out. **

Leo hit Harry upside the head.

"**What the hell's going on!?" Uncle Sirius snarled.**

"Wow."

**Aries pitied whoever jinxed the bludger at that brief moment. When they got back into the game, the twins stopped keeping Harry safe.**

"My pity was gone at that point."

**Harry started doing insane spins and loops in order to throw the bludger off. **

"Evasive maneuvers." Moody growled.

**Then Harry and Malfoy spotted the snitch and they raced each other to get it. They flew all over the field and even through the posts of the stands. Aries was hoping the game ended soon, regardless as to who won. **

Harry sent Aries a scandalized look. Aries flipped Harry off.

**Then Harry reached for the snitch and the bludger smashed his arm with a loud and sickening crack. **

Dorea looked close to tears.

**Harry managed to grab the snitch with his other hand and won the game. **

"Wow, just wow."

**Harry held the snitch before falling down. **

Everyone looked nervously at Harry.

**Uncle Sirius crawled to the front of the stand, and used the Gryffindor banner to slide down to the ground before running towards Harry.**

"Show off." James accused. Sirius blushed a bit.

**Aries and his friends took the stairs and followed Uncle Sirius.**

Sirius averted his eyes briefly.

**Fred and George were struggling to keep the bludger from doing any more damage.**

Septimus smiled a bit.

**Uncle Sirius aimed at the bludger and he undid the jinx that was on it.**

"You were royally pissed." Leo said.

**However, when Uncle Sirius wasn't looking, Lockhart showed up.**

"Not him." James groaned.

"**No, not you…" Harry groaned. **

James was too concerned to pick up on the similarity.

"**Doesn't know what he's saying." Lockhart said to the crowd.**

"Uh, yes I did."

**And just as Uncle Sirius turned around, Lockhart aimed a spell at Harry. "Oh My God!" Leo shouted in shock. **

Leo, Harry and Aries shuddered.

**Harry's arm was reduced to a fleshy rubber thing that hung limply. Lockhart had removed all the bones in Harry's broken arm.**

"YOU BLITHERING IDIOT!" Andromeda shouted. Ted and Nymphadora were slightly afraid of the former Black woman.

**Uncle Sirius took one look at what had happened and marched over with a very canine growl towards a retreating Lockhart.**

"Kick his arse!" James cheered.

"**Keep away my godson!" Uncle Sirius shouted before clocking Lockhart right in his face. Lockhart staggered back and Aries saw blood and some shiny teeth on the ground.**

"Right in his stupid pretty face!" James cheered as Remus read that line with a feral look in his eye.

**Uncle Sirius stomped back and picked Harry up and took him to the Hospital wing. **

"Oh, I hope he gets sacked." Frank said.

**Madam Pomfrey was far from pleased when Uncle Sirius told her what Lockhart did to Harry.**

Andromeda was still fuming.

"**He's going to need to stay the night. Growing bones is unpleasant." She said as she passed Harry a cup of something called Skelogro. **

**Harry took one sip and he spit it out onto Leo's face. **

"That was NASTY." Leo whined.

"**What did you expect, pumpkin juice?" Madam Pomfrey asked. **

"The best medicine is always bitter." Shizuka said.

**Uncle Sirius gave a bark like laugh as he used a clean towel to wipe Leo's face. "Fafa!" A muffled Leo whined. **

Sirius just chuckled.

"**Reminds me of when you boys were still babies." Uncle Sirius said fondly.**

Aries smiled a bit.

"**I'm gonna have a few words with Dumbledore about Lockhart, later." Uncle Sirius said sternly.**

"And hopefully another fist." Barty said.

**Uncle Sirius stayed and told them several stories from when he was at Hogwarts. **

"I like those stories." Harry said. "Well this time around you'll hear them so much that you'll be sick of them." James said with a determined nod.

**When he was in the middle of this story about how he and Moony and Prongs swam with the giant squid madam Pomfrey shooed them out of the hospital wing.**

"James and Sirius lost their swim trunks. And James looked over at Sirius and asked 'Where's your dick?' " Remus said much to the embarrassment of his two friends. "So Leo's thoroughly screwed, being Asian and all." Aries joked. Leo swatted at his cousin.

**Ron, Neville, Luna and Velvela left ahead of Aries and Leo.**

"Why?" Several people asked.

**Aries and Leo hugged Uncle Sirius goodnight as they headed towards their respective common rooms. **

Leo looked like he was trying to remember what happened.

**Aries stopped when he heard Leo talk to someone. Aries slunk back behind a corridor and listened. **

"Eavesdropper." Leo muttered.

"**Hey Tom, how're you doing?" Leo asked. Aries didn't here this Tom answer. "Oh, really?" Leo asked. Tom must have said something because Aries heard Leo laugh a bit. **

"Since when were you my keeper?" Leo asked indignantly. "When I say so." Aries replied. Harry sighed.

**Aries peeked and was shocked. All he saw was Leo.**

"Huh?" Lily asked.

**Then he noticed a faint ring of silver in Leo's eyes. So whoever this Tom was, was a ghost? **

"But that can't be thanks to Dumbledore." Arcturus pointed out. Shizuka and Sirius shared a worried look

**Aries shrugged and headed back to Ravenclaw Tower. He walked up to the eagle doorknob.**

Moody looked mildly reminiscent.

"**What ends everything always?" The eagle head asked. "G." Aries said and the door opened.**

"Not a bad riddle." McGonagall said as Moody nodded.

**He walked into the familiar Ravenclaw tower and was feeling how tired he really was then.**

"Adrenaline wore off?" James asked.

**When he got back there the Grey Lady was sitting in a chair, reading a book.**

"I don't think I've seen her do much." Frank said.

"**Good night." Aries said to the ghost and she gave him a curt nod. "Aries Black." She said as he was going to go up to his bed. "Yes Helena?" Aries asked politely. **

"Helena?" Several people asked. Aries and Moody nodded. "She hates being called the Grey Lady." Aries added.

"**Your cousin, the one in Hufflepuff." She said as he looked up at him. **

"His name is Leo." "Shut up Paddy." "You're both interrupting me."

"**What about Leo?" Aries asked. "Who has he been talking to?" She asked in concern.**

"Some invisible Slytherin." Barty snorted.

"**I think it's some ghost named Tom." Aries said with a yawn. **

"I was tired." Aries defended.

**She frowned. "There is no ghost here by that name." She said. **

"Strange considering how common the name is." Lily said.

**Aries looked up at her in shock. "What?" Aries asked. **

Shizuka was biting her lip nervously.

"**And no ghost that does not reside within the castle cannot enter." Helena said.**

"Tom looked like any regular person to me." Leo said.

**Aries paled. So who or what was Tom?**

Remus closed the book and Teddy turned his hair gold and brown.


	10. Chapter 10

"Who's next?" Remus asked as he shifted a babbling Teddy in his lap. James reached over and picked the book up.

"Wait." Barty said suddenly. "Hm?" Leo asked. "We have to go through seven whole books?" Barty asked. "No. Five of them are to be read here. One is a book with important information concerning the current war. The last one is a detailed record of all of Dumbledore's crimes until the current date." Aries said.

"By the way what's next?" Alice asked. Bellatrix picked up the third book. "Harry Potter and the Cousins Black and the Two Prisoners." She read. "What prisoners?" Charlus asked.

"Next story." Harry said as he motioned for his dad to read the next chapter.

**Chapter 10. Phoenix Ash and Toilet Diaries **

"What the hell?"

**Leo walked around the halls looking for Tom. **

"Uhm, please don't." Sirius said. Leo went sheepish.

**Tom said he misplaced something and he wanted to help him find it.**

Harry crossed his arms and grumbled a bit under his breath.

**One morning as he was walking with Harry they saw Ginny. She looked really sick. **

Septimus looked a bit worried.

**When she saw Harry she ran away quickly. **

"Still got it bad." Liliana sighed.

**They walked towards the Great Hall and sat down at Gryffindor table. "Where's Colin?" Neville asked. "Yeah, he's usually here by now." Leo pointed out. **

"Where is he?" Alice asked.

**Harry looked upset.**

"What happened?"

"**Aries asked. Harry nodded. **

"Oh, no." Several people gasped.

"**Last night Dobby came by and admitted he jinxed the bludger." Harry said. **

"HE DID WHAT!?"

"**What?" Leo hissed. "He said he did it so that I would be sent home.**

Several people were grumbling. "He wanted me to be safe from the Chamber's monster." Harry defended.

**He also said this has happened before. The Chamber was opened before." Harry whispered quickly.**

Everyone of McGonagall's generation grimaced. "They almost shut the school down." Augusta said.

**Leo felt his stomach tighten. "After Dobby left, they brought Colin in." Harry said. **

"That royally suck." Frank said.

**Leo frowned. Colin was a sweet guy. He was a bit weird, but he was nice. "This sucks." Ron muttered as he fiddled with his food. They all ate sparingly. **

"Even Ron?" "Yeah."

**They all entered their classes a bit heavier than usual. **

"Not surprised." Charlus said.

**Leo was in Transfiguration when Professor McGonagall told him to go up to the Headmaster's office. **

"Oh no." Everyone groaned collectively.

**She led him there when his classmates kept mentioning his bad sense of direction.**

"I'm getting better." Leo huffed. "Barely." Aries said earning him a pillow to the noggin.

**She led him up to the bronze Griffin statue. "Lemon drop." She said and the statue turned to reveal a staircase.**

"This year the password is Fizzing Whizzbee." James said. "Of course you know." Dorea sighed.

**Leo walked up tentatively. As he entered the sort of cluttered office he heard a voice. "Sirius Black?" A voice called.**

"UGH." Sirius groaned.

**Leo looked around and it was a portrait of a middle aged man. "No. I'm his son." Leo said nervously. "Oh, I've heard of you." The portrait said. "I'm your great -great uncle, former headmaster Phineas Nigellous Black." The portrait introduced. **

"He's a prick." "Sirius!" "What? It's true!"

"**Leo Black." Leo said. "You look much like your father." Phineas said.**

"We get that a lot." Aries and Harry said.

**Leo nodded and noticed a musical trill. There was a decrepit looking bird on a perch. **

"Aw." Sirius groaned.

**Leo walked up to it. The bird moved its head towards Leo. As Leo moved to touch the bird it burned into ash right before his very eyes.**

"Oh a phoenix!" Narcissa said.

"**Ah, Leo." Dumbledore said softly. Leo started to panic. "Professor I didn't mean to- It just-" Dumbledore just chuckled softly at him. "It's alright my dear boy. Fawkes is a phoenix." Dumbledore said.**

"Have you ever seen Fawkes leave his office?" Sirius asked. James lowered the book. "Now that you mention it I haven't." James said. "That's odd." Moody grumbled. "Where did he even get Fawkes anyway?" Remus asked as Teddy's hair was Gryffindor red and gold. "You'll find out later." Aries said.

**Leo's eyes rounded as he looked carefully at the ash pile. Then from the ashes came a small grey chick. Leo smiled a bit.**

"You really love animals." Harry said. "Except rodents." Leo amended. Aries snorted.

"**Isn't he wonderful? It's a shame that you couldn't see him in his prime. He's absolutely beautiful." Dumbledore said.**

"Fawkes actually is a very beautiful phoenix." McGonagall said.

"**Uhm, sir. Why did you call me up?" Leo asked.**

"The million galleon question."

"**I called you up here in regards to what your father did to Professor Lockhart the other day." Dumbledore said as he picked up a lemon candy off of his desk. **

"AGRH!"

"**But he-" Leo tried to protest. "I understand why your father did it. I also talked Gilderoy out of pressing charges against Sirius."**

"You say that as if you're doing me a favor!" Sirius growled. Arcturus frowned deeply. "Sounds as if he's trying to get you indebted to him." The Black Patriarch said. Charlus looked livid at the implication.

**Dumbledore said as he grabbed another candy.**

The Marauders growled.

"**I had hoped your father would grow out of his impulsive behaviors, but I find that many other parents would have done the same, had they been in his shoes." Dumbledore said softly.**

"You manipulative old coot!" Augusta shouted.

**Leo kept his face as blank as possible. He remained quiet.**

"Where the hell did you learn that?" Sirius asked. Leo shifted his eyes towards Regulus.

"**Is that all sir?" Leo asked after gathering his thoughts.**

"I was cursing the old man for what he said about you." Leo said to his dad.

"**I also wanted to apologize to you for what the Dursleys did. I honestly believed that they were your family and that they would keep you safe." Dumbledore said with a dim look in his eyes.**

Everyone hissed and narrowed their eyes.

**Leo wished at a time like this he had Aries. Aries would be able to tell if he was lying or not.**

"It's not that reliable either." Aries said. "What do you mean?" Barty asked. "If someone believes the lie, it would feel as if they are telling the truth." Aries pointed out.

"Wait so you can use your ability to read people's emotions and be able to tell if they are lying based off of those emotions?" Lucius asked.

"Yeah." Aries said in surprise. He wasn't expecting him to figure it out so quickly.

**If Leo had to guess, Dumbledore was being sincere about it.**

Everyone was confused to varying degrees.

"**Hardly anyone would have guessed what they really did." Leo said quietly. How many times did he ask for help? How many times did they not believe him? He lost count and hope shortly after. **

Sirius looked guilt ridden and Shizuka's mouth trembled as she fought back tears.

**Aries was the first to lose his hope of something good happening. **

Aries averted his dark eyes, mostly to avoid seeing his father's.

**Harry was always more optimistic back then. He might not have always said it, but he always believed that good things do happen. **

James gripped the book tighter than he needed to as Liliana hid her face in his shoulder.

**Although Harry might have stopped hoping when Leo almost died. **

"WHAT!?" Everyone asked in shock. Leo just silently motioned for James to keep reading.

"**Leo, my boy?" Dumbledore asked. "I am sorry for leaving you, your cousin and god brother with them." Dumbledore said. "Thanks." Leo muttered. **

Leo grunted a bit, not trusting his voice.

**Hagrid came in carrying a handful of dead roosters and Dumbledore dismissed Leo. Leo walked back down, and wandered down a hallway hoping he found the transfiguration classroom. **

"Still lost." Sirius chuckled weakly.

"**Leo." A smooth voice called from around a corner. "Tom." Leo said with a sad grin. **

Shizuka frowned a bit. If he wasn't a ghost what was he?

**Tom frowned a bit when he noticed how sad Leo looked. "Is everything alright?" Tom asked. "Yeah, just got some troubling news from Dumbledore is all." Leo said as he pushed down his sadness. "Nothing too bad?" Tom asked. Leo shook his head.**

Leo grumbled under his breath. Remus was sure he heard the words "…liar…pretend…use…"

"**Are you lost?" Tom asked. Leo nodded sheepishly. "Which class?" Tom asked kindly. "Transfiguration." Leo said. **

McGonagall frowned slightly.

"**Go down that corridor and it should be the second classroom on your left." Tom said pointing towards the corridor behind Leo. "Thanks Tom." Leo said happily. **

"It's great how nice he's being." Lily pointed out.

**Tom smiled a bit at him. "No problem." Tom told him as he walked in the opposite direction of Leo.**

Lily smiled a bit.

**Leo managed to get back towards Transfiguration right when Professor McGonagall assigned homework. Leo groaned as he sat back down next to Velvela. **

Leo cowered under her stern look.

**She laughed at him. "If you weren't so lazy you could get this all done today." She pointed out. Leo frowned. "But it's so boring!" Leo whined. "Suck it up." Velvela said. Leo stuck his tongue out at her.**

"So mature." "Thanks Mama."

"**So mature." She said sarcastically as they headed out to Charms.**

Aries grinned a bit.

**Leo was bored for most of the lesson. They were learning cheering charms. Leo got it done quickly and tried to start his essay for Transfiguration. He managed to get a good start on it.**

McGonagall looked surprised.

"**I heard Myrtle flooded the bathroom again." Hannah whispered. "She did. I had to dry my socks." Susan whispered back.**

All of the girls who attend Hogwarts groaned.

**Leo was curious. So when lunch started he headed off in some direction. He managed to find Ron and Harry. **

Harry smiled a bit.

**They followed him towards Myrtle's bathroom. Sure enough Leo was ankle deep in water. "Ugh." Ron said as he lifted a soggy foot out of the water.**

"EW."

**Myrtle was crying. "Hello?" Leo asked as he walked inside. Myrtle was a ghost girl with pigtails. She was floating by the window.**

"She does that when she gets upset." Alice said.

"**What are you doing here? You're not a girl." Myrtle said.**

"Debatable." "HARRY!"

"**We heard you crying and wanted to make sure you were okay." Harry said.**

"Smooth."

**Myrtle slowly drifted back towards them. "I was here minding my own business, thinking about death, when someone thought it would be funny to through a book at me." She moaned. **

"But she's intangible." Regulus said in confusion.

"**But how could a book hurt you? Won't it just go straight through you?" Ron asked. **

"She's very touchy about these kinds of things." Lily said delicately.

**She flew straight into Ron's face. "Oh sure let's through things at Myrtle since she can't feel it! Ten points if you get it through her head!" Her arm went straight through Ron's. "Twenty points if you get it through her stomach!" Ron shuddered as her arm went through his.**

Septimus frowned a bit.

"**He didn't mean to upset you." Leo said quickly as Ron rubbed his stomach. **

"Not the most tactful." Harry admitted.

**Harry splashed over somewhere and he picked something up. It looked as if someone tried to flush a book down the toilet. Gross.**

"ICK."

"**I'm sorry if he hurt your feelings." Leo added. Ron nodded after Leo elbowed him. **

Harry sent Leo a questioning look.

**Myrtle drifted back towards the window moaning and crying.**

"UGH." The girls intoned.

**Harry ushered them out of the bathroom just when Percy came by. Leo winced at the argument the two had. "Jerk." Ron said under his breath. **

Septimus frowned but he let it slide. Brothers argued.

"**Look." Harry pointed out. It was a black book. "Is that what they threw at Myrtle?" Leo asked. "I think so." Harry said. They ran back towards the Great Hall and quickly grabbed food to go. **

"I lost points for eating." Leo whined.

**They continued through the day when Leo noticed something weird. "Spiders." Ron said as he shuddered. There was a line of small black spiders crawling out of the castle windows. **

"Weird." Several people said.

"**Since when do spiders do that?" Aries asked. **

"No idea." Frank said.

"**Why don't you like spiders?" Neville asked. "Fred turned my teddy into one when I broke his toy broom." Ron said with a shudder.**

"EW."

**Luna looked closely at the spiders. "I wonder where they'll go." She said airily. **

"Fascinating." Xenophilius said.

"**We're going to be late!" Velvela said as she looked down at her pink muggle watch. They walked off to their respective classes. Leo was unfortunate enough to get Defense.**

"Of all the rotten luck." Sirius whined.

**Velvela had to push him into the classroom.**

"Don't blame you." Everyone said.

"**Now then, let's move onto my Voyages with Vampires." Lockhart said loudly. **

"Shut up." Several people groaned in annoyance.

**Leo ignored him and went back to reading this old tome called the Spirit Grimoire he asked Moony to send him.**

"Really?" Arcturus asked. "How'd you hear about that?" The patriarch asked. "I just asked for a book on the dead." Leo said sheepishly. "So Sirius just lets you read that?" Charlus asked. Leo had this guilty look on his face. "You didn't tell me." Sirius accused. "Sorry." Leo asked as he shrank in his seat.

_**One form of exorcism is the use of seals. The exorcist can take further control over which spirits may roam in the specific area through a difficult procedure. **_

_**Items: One block of salt, One piece of pure silver, One bushel of sage, One piece of cold iron, Four pieces of Quartz, parchment and red ink.**_

Shizuka hummed a bit.

**Leo had to put his book away, Lockhart was walking around and checking to make sure they were reading. Leo leaned over to Velvela's side. She was playing with a deck of cards, but she had a book opened to look like she was reading.**

Sirius forgave his son with the good trick.

"**Leo where's your book?" Lockhart asked. Leo looked boredly up at the man. "I lent it to a friend who had theirs stolen." Leo lied. He actually used it as a fire starter to roast some marshmallows Bitsy gave him. **

Sirius barked out a laugh.

"**Ah, how thoughtful of you." Lockhart said as he walked past him. Leo felt Lockhart brush a hand against his side though, and it was rather creepy. **

Leo shuddered. "Ew, just ew." Everyone groaned in disgust.

**Leo shrugged it off. They continued to play war under the table for the duration of the class. **

Several people snorted.

**Things were rather boring. **

The three from the future rolled their eyes.

**During dinner Harry showed them the book. It was completely blank.**

"Huh?"

"**How flushes a blank book?" Velvela asked. "It's a diary." Luna pointed out. "But why would someone try to flush a blank diary? A written one I can understand but this is weird." Ron said. Leo was wondering how a small soggy book could cause it to be drowned in a girl's toilet. **

Several people snorted at Ron's comment.

**He was told that there were some dangerous books that had spells and curses on them. So Leo opened the toilet diary with the back of his spoon**

Several people chuckled at Leo. Leo went sheepish.

**Aries looked thoughtful for a moment. "Gred, Forge!" Aries called. The twins looked up from their massive food piles at Aries. "Do either of you have a reveler?" Aries asked. Fred nodded and George tossed one at them. It looked like a bright red eraser. **

"Nice thinking Ree." Barty praised.

**Aries rubbed the one of the pages, but it was still blank. **

"Damn."

**Aries tossed it back to them and it landed in Fred's mashed potatoes. "Hey!" "Sorry!"**

Chuckles and laughter spread throughout the room.

**Harry looked at the back of the book. "It says here that this book is about fifty years old." Harry said as he looked at the smudged ink. Aries turned to the back cover. "Vauxhall Road." Aries read. "Must've been a muggleborn." Leo said.**

Several people looked curious

**Aries flipped through the pages with a puzzled look on his face. "This belonged to someone named T. ." Aries said. **

McGonagall and Dorea shared a grimace.

**Ron looked surprised. "Let me see." Ron said as he took the book to see the name. "T. . I remember that name. I had to polish his award during detention. Filch made me clean it three times after I had another slug attack." Ron said as he passed the book back to Aries. **

McGonagall nodded grudgingly.

**Aries looked puzzled. "Fifty years ago this Riddle guy won an award? What'd he do?" Neville asked Ron. "The award was for his services to the school." Ron said as he got another forkful of meatloaf. **

Sveral people whistled. That was an impressive award to get.

**Aries kept looking puzzled. "This is gonna bug you all night huh?" Leo asked. "Probably. The wrackspurts won't let him sleep when something puzzles him." Luna said airily.**

Xenophilius smiled.

**Ron snorted a bit. **

"Him and his crude humor." Harry sighed.

"**Well you always loved a good Riddle." Leo joked.**

Aries shot Leo a cold and dry look.Everyone groaned at the stupid pun.

**As they ate dinner Professor McGonagall came towards them and Harry pocketed the diary. "Professor?" Neville asked. **

Augusta looked curious.

"**Ah, Mr. Longbottom. Your grandmother owled this in earlier while you were in class." McGonagall said as she handed Neville a package. **

Augusta and McGonagall shared a fond smile.

**Before she could turn away Aries spoke up. "Professor, can I ask you something?" Aries asked. "Yes, Mr. Black?" She asked. "This Chamber of Secrets. Was it ever opened before?" Aries asked. **

McGonagall's eyes flashed with sorrow.

"**Unfortunately." She replied. "When was that?" Aries asked curiously. "My seventh year. Nearly fifty years ago." McGonagall said sadly. "Unfortunately it ended with a poor girl dying." She said as she wiped her eyes with a lace handkerchief. **

Everyone either looked shocked or sad.

"**Sorry for bringing it up." Aries apologized. "No trouble at all, Mr. Black. It's only natural that a curious Ravenclaw such as yourself would be asking about this." McGonagall said with a tiny smile. Aries blushed a bit. "Uncle says I'm the first in the family to be Ravenclaw." Aries admitted.**

Aries smiled proudly.

"**Indeed. I was shocked when Sirius was sorted into my House." McGonagall said. **

Sirius grinned.

"**Although you and your cousin seemed to have inherited his penchant for troublemaking." She added sternly. **

She casted the cousins a stern look then too.

**Leo grinned sheepishly. "That obvious?" He asked. She gave him a dry look.**

"Apparently yes." Aries said.

"**Sorry to hold you up Professor." Aries said. She nodded at him. "Thanks Professor Minnie!" Leo said much to her ire judging by her sudden rigidness as she stepped back towards the High Table.**

She groaned as the marauders cheered.

"**Minnie?" Velvela asked in shock. "That's what Sirius and my dad used to call her when they were students." Harry said as he got another vegetable pasty. "They had bollocks then." Ron said causing Neville to nod. **

Sirius and James snorted.

"**You have enough courage to run in front of a troll, smuggle a dragon and call her 'Minnie' but you're a Puff?" Aries asked with a raised brow. "My courage comes and goes." Leo said as he waved his fork at his cousin. **

Leo hummed mindlessly.

"**Hypocrite." Harry said. "You've sung for a Cerberus, fought a troll, drank Snape-brewed potions and live with us." Harry said. "He has a point, mate." Ron said as he snagged a sausage from Velvela's plate. **

"He does you know." Charlus said kindly.

"**Are we going to have an adventure too? Because I want to look for a Heliopath." Luna said. "Maybe, later Looney." Ron said jokingly. "Ron!" Velvela huffed. "It's alright. I don't mind if my friends use it." Luna said. **

Aries frowned a bit.

"**Yeah we give each other weird nicknames." Neville said with an unsteady grin. "It only works with friends since we know we don't mean anything by it." Harry added. **

"True." Sirius said.

"**Like how my god father calls my pureblooded Papa a mutt." Leo pointed out.**

Sirius grinned.

**Harry looked at Luna. "When they had long hair I used to call them Arianna and Leona." Harry said with a smirk. **

Everyone laughed.

"**And you were known as the midget." Leo countered. **

**Ron snorted a bit. "Velvet here's called me Ginger a few times." Velvela huffed at the nickname good naturedly. "Aries had called me Hobbit a couple of times." Neville pointed out. "What's a hobbit?" Luna asked. **

Xenophilius looked interested.

**Aries went on describing The Hobbit novel and the Lord of the Rings to Luna and Ron looked interested as well. "Those are muggle stories?" Ron asked in wonder. "Yeah. I can get you some books if you want." Aries said. **

Septimus smiled.

**Ron looked thoughtful. "Why not? I know my dad will go off his rocker when he gets a chance to read them too." Ron said with a grin.**

Septimus smiled too.

"**There great books." Leo admitted. "Are there any good magical novels?" Aries asked. **

"There are several actually." Regulus said.

**Ron looked contemplative. "Dunno, since I don't read a whole bunch. You can ask Percy if you like." Ron said.**

"He actually named a few good ones." Aries said.

"**Do you think the diary could be hiding something about the chamber?" Luna asked suddenly when they started dessert. "Hopefully. Maybe Riddle wrote something down." Aries said as he grabbed a slice of strawberry pie. **

Aries snorted at his literary self's words.

**They talked a bit lower than usual, but they didn't worry much about eavesdroppers since the whole hall was busy talking loudly.**

The marauders nodded slightly. Moody shook his head a bit.

"**Maybe it has to do with his award." Ron said as he grabbed a couple slices of thick chocolate cake. Leo wasn't sure what to think, but just maybe they could figure out what exactly was going on.**

"Of course you boys get sucked into this." Shizuka sighed.

**{Okay so I was originally going to redo all seven books, but I realized that I probably won't have the time to redo all of them. I'm going to cover the third year next, and the fourth year after that. In the last book I'm going to try and combine the next two or three years. I hope I can get them all done. Anyway, feel free to comment, and thanks for reading!}**


	11. Chapter 11

Liliana picked up the book and turned to the next chapter.

**Chapter 11. Barrier**

James and Charlus shared a brief look at the name of the title.

**Harry was worried when he went down to breakfast and saw Aries asleep on an empty plate.**

Regulus sent a worried look at his son.

**Neville kept trying to wake him up but Aries just kept sleeping on the golden plate.**

"And I thought I had sleeping problems." Leo snorted.

**Harry sat down next to Ron who was eating a stack of blueberry pancakes.**

Septimus shook his head fondly at the mention of the Weasley family appetite.

"**Harry, how're y—what the heck happened to Aries?" Leo asked when he and Velvela walked over towards them. "He's been doing plenty of late night readings." Luna said airily.**

Leo smacked a hand upside his cousin's head.

"**Huh?" Ron asked as he had a piece of bacon in his mouth. "He's been trying to figure out what Harry did at the duel." Luna clarified.**

"Of course he did." Sirius said fondly.

"**But that was weeks ago." Harry said worriedly.**

"Uh Ree, you didn't need to go through all that." James said. Aries nodded.

**Velvela sat next to Aries and gently shook him awake.**

"Best way to wake up if you're stuck with these lot." Aries said motioning towards Leo and Harry.

"**Hmmfuh?" Aries groaned as he rose his head slightly. "You should eat something." Velvela suggested. "Yeah Ree, you're running on empty." Leo pointed out. Aries yawned and stretched a bit.**

"Welcome to playing house." James snorted. "Now you know how I feel when you two did it to me." Harry said as he crossed his arms. Aries and Leo shared an eye roll.

"**Did you happen to find anything?" Neville asked. **

"I hope you did." Alice said.

**Aries nodded as he rubbed the sleep out of his bleary eyes.**

Charlus looked shocked.

"**I think I found a book that would say what happened." Aries yawned and Velvela had to keep shaking him from sleeping on the plate again. **

Aries and Harry shared a look.

"**What's the catch?" Leo asked. "Restr-YAWN- ed secti'n." Aries mumbled. **

"Of course." Several future parents and grandparents groaned.

"**Can't this wait 'till we go on break?" Harry asked uncomfortably. "Harry, this is Aries we are talking about." Leo deadpanned as he snagged a waffle.**

"Where did you get you're determination?" Sirius asked Aries. Aries didn't say anything.

"**But to get in the restriction section we need a Professor's signature." Neville pointed out as Velvela was trying to coax Aries into eating a small bit of melon. **

"Neville has a point." Frank said. Regulus sent a questioning look at his son. Aries smirked a bit.

"**But only someone really thick would sign off on a book like this." Ron pointed out as he cleaned his plate.**

"REALLY thick." Remus said loudly. Teddy yipped and turned his hair teal as he demanded for Remus to hold him.

**That's when Aries jolted upright with a glint in his eye.**

"Oh boy." Barty said. "You sound like Harry there Ree." Leo said.

"**Ron, you're a genius!" Aries said happily. "What just happened?" Ron asked. **

Several people chuckled and laughed.

"**Never mind that—EAT." Velvela said as she pushed some fruits and pancakes onto Aries plate.**

Arcturus raised an eyebrow at the book.

**Aries raised a single dark brow at her. She narrowed her hazel eyes briefly.**

Aries chuckled a bit.

"**Leo's right you're running on empty." She said. Aries sighed and bean to slowly eat. They all left for their classes. **

"Good." McGonagall said sternly.

"**I thought you had sleeping issues." Velvela muttered at Leo as they walked to Herbology. Leo blushed and mumbled an 'I'm sleeping more.'**

"Now you sleep too much." Harry intoned.

**The mandrakes were now covered with acne. **

"EWW."

**Harry and Ron were disgusted slightly as Neville was completely excited.**

"Neville likes Herbology?" Augusta asked. The three nodded. "He's the best in the subject." Leo said happily.

**Harry even heard Neville talk to Professor Sprout about the Venomous Tentacula in the corner of the greenhouse.**

"That's a menacing plant." Lily pointed out. "Only when it's teething." Aries pointed out. Lily didn't look convinced.

"**How is it you're brilliant at Herbology, but still completely rubbish at Potions?" Ron asked. **

"Good point. Usually both coincide with each other rather intricately." Abarax said.

**Neville was a bit nervous. "Snape doesn't like me at all." Neville said. Harry grimaced. "He hates me too." Harry pointed out. **

Lily huffed a bit and Harry would have said something if Aries didn't shoot him a warning glance.

"**Same with Leo and Aries." Ron added as Leo managed to wander in the wrong direction and Velvela had to drag him up to the castle so he doesn't get lost again.**

"I'M BETTER!" Leo defended.

"**Me and Leo I get since our dads used to fight with Snape when they went to school." Harry pointed out.**

"More like bully." Lily snapped. Leo grimaced and clenched a fist as Harry crossed his arms crossly.

"**But from what I can tell, he should like Aries since his dad was a Slytherin. **

"Ugh." Aries groaned. "I think he really only likes Evans." Regulus pointed out. Several students nodded.

**And I have no idea why he doesn't like you." Harry said to Neville.**

The Longbottoms and Alice shared a grimace. "I think it gets explained soon." Leo said.

"**I think he doesn't like Aries since he's a lot like your god father." Neville said causing Ron's eyes to round. "That makes sense. Aries isn't a traditional Slytherin like his uncle, he pulls pranks and he isn't a pureblood supporter." Ron said as they walked back up to the castle.**

Aries shrugged a bit. "You're still a lot like your dad." Sirius said. Sirius' words brought a small, barely noticeable smile on Regulus' lips.

"**That still doesn't explain about why he hates Neville." Harry pointed out with a frown.**

Several people grumbled, not noticing Lily's irritation and Harry's rigidness.

"**I don't mind too much." Neville protested. "But I think your gran will." Ron said causing Neville to pale.**

Frank sent a slightly fearful look at his mother and was rewarded with a look that curdled his spine.

"**If she found out, she'd take his greasy head!" Neville cried. "Hopefully." Ron snorted.**

Lily frowned. "He really has the personality of a cactus." Aries said as Harry opened his mouth to say something. Nymphadora's hair went deep green and spikey. Teddy tried to copy it, but his hair was just messy with green tips.

**Snape loved to torment him and his friends, the man could get sacked to Timbuktu for all Harry cared.**

"That's rather mean of you." Lily admonished. "Y'know, I'd prefer it if you didn't judge me based on my twelve year old thoughts about a man who made it clear that he hates me." Harry snapped. Lily looked shocked that he would say that to her.

Liliana looked a bit surprised, if a bit proud, before she continued reading.

**They wandered into Defense and Harry was again chosen to reenact something. This time it was the Wagga Wagga werewolf.**

Remus rolled his eyes as his friends snickered.

**He managed to snarl convincingly enough to freak Lavender and Hermione out a little. And he couldn't help but give a realistic howl that even had Lockhart trembling in his coral colored buckled heeled shoes.**

"I learned from the best." Harry said with a grin at Remus. Remus returned the smile before Teddy gave a squeaky little howl of his own that had Moony proud of the little pup.

**After Defense they had a free period thankfully. As Harry and Ron were waiting for Neville to finish packing his things Aries, Leo and Velvela walked into the classroom.**

Several people looked confused.

**Leo motioned for them to follow and soon the six of them were standing in front of Lockhart.**

The Marauders shared a questioning look before that look transformed into a smirk.

"**Professor Lockhart, may I have your signature for this book?" Velvela asked as Aries held a slip of paper in one hand that said 'The Tome of Ancient Talents' in a neat scrawl. **

"Hogwarts has a copy?" Arcturus asked in surprise. "I thought I owned one of the few copies still intact." Charlus said.

"You did." Harry said. Then the voice from earlier came back. "Well this doesn't get explained in any of the books so here it is: that book is yours Charlus. Dumbledore added it to the library after collecting several other items off of you and James."

Everyone went livid, and it took several minutes for everyone to calm down.

"**It's in the restriction section but it will help us with completely your genius when you trapped that ghoul in a tea strainer." Leo said smoothly.**

Sevreal people snorted in derision.

"**Aries here, was trying so hard on his own to understand the genius at work." Leo tacked on. "He's been trying so hard he hasn't slept in weeks." Harry added as Ron and Neville nodded.**

Aries mimed a gag.

"**Ah, Gadding with Ghouls, a personal favorite." Lockhart said. "But don't feel too bad Aries, many have also tried, and have come to similar stops." Lockhart said pompously as he got a peacock quill that swished a foot in the air as he wrote out his signature with practiced fluidness. **

"Eurgh." Septimus groaned.

**Ron made a disgusted face at the quill. "Yes, it's rather impressive isn't it?" Lockhart asked, not properly reading Ron's expression.**

"Family resemblance." Leo coughed.

**That's when Luna came in. "Excuse me professor, but can you sign my text book?" Luna asked airily.**

Even Xenophilius looked puzzled.

"**Of course my dear." Lockhart said as he signed the first blank page of the book. Soon they all walked out and as soon as they rounded the corner Aries slapped Leo. "His genius!?" Aries asked indignantly.**

"His stupidity and ego." Leo amended.

"**Hey, YOU said to stroke the ponce's ego." Leo retorted.**

"I was also running on an hour of sleep, so don't always listen to me." Aries said.

"**So we got him to sign for this book, what's Luna need the autograph for?" Ron asked as he glared at the cover version of Lockhart. "I thought that we could forge a signature later if we need it." Luna said.**

"Brilliant!" The marauders praised.

**Ron blinked before grinning at the small Ravenclaw. "Luna, that's brilliant." Ron praised and Luna smiled up at him warmly.**

The three from the future shared a warm look.

**They rushed towards the library. Harry, Ron, Luna, Leo and Neville waited at an empty table as Velvela and Aries went to Madam Pince to get the book. **

"These two do the same." Remus said as he pointed at the two teenaged animagi.

**They came back carrying a large book that made a heavy THUD.**

"Yeesh!"

**Aries opened the book, causing dust to fly from the ancient pages. Inside were pictures that surprised Harry. There was one of a witch talking to trees, and a wizard that was changing his hair to long red curls. **

"Metamorphmagi information?" Ted asked curiously. Charlus nodded. "If you want you and Andromeda can look through it after this." Charlus offered. The Tonks couple accepted with warm smiles.

"**I found something on parselmouths." Aries said. "You're a pareselmouth?" Ron asked in shock and Neville looked at him with wide eyes. Harry nodded as he looked down a bit.**

Liliana rolled her eyes a bit at the prejiduce that was quick to form in Britain.

"**It doesn't matter Harry." Luna whispered. His friends gave him all reassuring looks that put him at ease.**

Harry smiled.

"**Says here most cultures respect them, and some claim it's a divine blessing from ancient gods." Aries breathed.**

Liliana nodded. "Some people were crazy about parselmouths back in Italy." Liliana added.

**Harry sent the book a shrewd look. Gods? Divine powers? **

Several people snorted at the idea, not noticing the strange looks in the eyes of the three from the future.

**Soon they were all taking turns going through several pages each when Harry skimmed and found something that caught his eye. There was an entire page on empathy. When no one was looking he silently freed the page from the fragile binding and pocketed it for later. **

"You better hope Pince didn't see you or your hide will be tanned." James said morosely.

**Soon it was Velvela's turn and she whispered "I found it!" at them. **

Several peole were very interested.

**Harry shifted the book towards himself and read the page.**

_**Barriers**_

"NO WAY!" Sirius shouted as he looked between the Potter men. Charlus nodded. "It's true Pads." James said. Liliana was confused so she continued.

_**There are a select few with the power to manipulate barriers.**_

_**A wizard with this skill can create, control, or even negate barriers.**_

_**A barrier is something like a shield spell. However**_

_**It is not just a physical barrier from spells.**_

_**It can be used to block living objects, or even **_

_**Attacks on the mind, as if it were a natural occumens.**_

_**There have even been reports of barriers being broken to**_

_**Enter other realms most wizards are unable to enter.**_

_**It is believed to be a hereditary skill.**_

_**The last known barrier master was**_

**From there the name was smudged badly.**

"That would be our ancestor Marcellius Potter." Charlus said shocking Harry.

"**That thing with the snake—you created a barrier between it and Justin." Aries breathed.**

Harry averted his eyes at the shocked looks he was receiving.

"**But if that's the case why didn't I use this barrier thing before?" Harry asked.**

"Excellent question." Abarax said as he casted a look at the Potters.

"**Hang on." Neville said as he thumbed through the book. "Here." He said as he showed them a page.**

Several people were at the edges of their seats.

_**Blocks**_

_**This is a learnable skill, but it takes much magic to fully master.**_

_**A block is essentially a seal placed on another wizard's magic.**_

_**Often times, it is placed on dangerous criminals, or children who **_

_**Are unable to control most of their magic.**_

_**While it is rare, some blocks can go unnoticed **_

_**In medical examinations if the blocker is powerful enough.**_

**Harry paled a bit. Did someone put a block on him? Did Aries and Leo have blocks on them as well? **

Several people growled viciously at the implication.

"**Let's get to class." Velvela said as she returned the book to Madam Pince.**

"She really does sound like you Moony." Sirius said in surprise.

**They went about their lessons when someone screamed. They ran towards the scream and found Daphne Greengrass shaking as she stared up in horror at a petrified fourth year from Ravenclaw.**

"WHAT!?"

"**It was here." Neville said in shock.**

Frank was nervously looking at Alice.

**Harry shuddered. Why didn't he hear anything? Was it anywhere near the library? **

Harry grumbled a bit.

**Daphne was still shaking badly. Walked over towards her. "Are you ok?" Harry asked. She nervously nodded. **

"Such a ladies man." Leo snorted. Harry gave him a rude one handed gesture.

"**Did you see what did this to them?" Harry asked. She shook her head. Harry stepped around so he faced the usually haughty brunette. **

James and Sirius waggled their eyebrows at Harry.

"**You're fine right?" Harry asked kindly. She looked him in the eye and nodded after a brief pause. **

Dorea was slightly giddy and Charlus had a fond smile in his face.

"**That's good." Harry said. "Yeah." She said quietly. "We need to be more careful then." Harry said as he casted a look back at the petrified student.**

"Why has nothing been done yet?" McGonagall asked angrily.

"**We? Isn't the monster attacking Muggleborns?" Daphne asked.**

"Excellent point." Arcturus added.

**Aries and Luna looked carefully at the Ravenclaw. **

"That was eerie for us." Aries said.

"**How can the monster know? We're all witches and wizards." Harry asked.**

"Well put Harry." Charlus praised. Harry smiled brightly at his grandfather.

**She gave him a strange look before turning away. They were ushered towards their common rooms when the Professors came in. **

McGonagall nodded.

**For days after that several students were nervous since the monster still hasn't been caught, and so far the only victims were muggleborn. The only ones not worried about all of this were the purebloods like Malfoy. In fact some of them were gloating.**

There was grumbling from both ends of the spectrum, so Liliana quickly continued the chapter before any arguments could take place.

**Harry had to visit Madam Pomfrey after holding Velvela back when a Slytherin a year below them said something rude about Colin. **

Harry rubbed his arms at the memory. Aries and Leo nodded. "She's one of the sweetest girls in the world." Aries said. "You just don't want her mad." Leo added.

"**Why don't we go and visit Hagrid that always cheers us up." Leo said as he was rubbing a patch of bruises Madam Pomfrey was in the middle of healing. They all walked to Hagrid's hut after dinner.**

Regulus frowned a bit. He was thankful that the Groundskeeper told Aries about being a wizard, but he wished his son chose better when it came to the individuals he associated with,

**They got in and chatted briefly with Hagrid. Apparently he had some choice things to say about Lockhart. "If a word of his books 's true, I'll eat me kettle." Hagrid huffed.**

They all laughed at that.

**Before they knew it, it was about half an hour past curfew.**

"Time flies by at Hagrids." James said. The marauders and the three from the future nodded.

**Right when they were about to get ready to leave there was a knock on the door. "Hide!" Hagrid whispered at them. "Jus' a minute!" Hagrid said loudly as Harry and his friends clambered down under the large bed.**

"Plenty of room." Leo noted.

**Harry was holding his hand over his mouth so that his breathing wouldn't be heard. **

The marauders nodded at the hiding tactic. McGonagall shook her head and Lily looked annoyed at their pranking streak.

**Hagrid opened the door to show Snape. **

Grumble, grumble, several insults about Snape later.

**Harry didn't have to look to know that most of his friends were glaring at the bitter dungeon brewer.**

So were several others listening.

"**Hagrid, I came to ask about that order of cox combs." Snape sneered. "Sorry, Pr'fessor Snape. Somethin's been killin' most of me roosters. I'll get yer order filled in a couple o' days." Hagrid said politely.**

"Why can't he just go and buy some himself?" Frank asked with narrowed eyes.

"**I should hope so… Good night." Snape said before prowling off with a swish of his black robes. **

"He does the prowl and swish thing now." James said. Lily frowned at the stag animagus. "He does that only when you guys pick on him." Lily defended.

"But to treat our sons like crap just because their fathers were jerks is in and of itself childish." Shizuka said steadily. Lily blushed a bit in embarrassment. "Besides, Snape's baggage gets explained soon." Harry said as he casted a stern look at Lily.

"Harry, can I have a word with you?" McGonagall asked. Harry and the professor walked into an empty room that was provided for them.

"Yes, Professor?" Harry asked politely. "Mr. Po—Harry, can I ask why you're behaving the way you are around Ms. Evans?" The Transfiguration Professor asked. Harry blinked in surprise. "It'll be explained in later books, but a main reason I can tell you is that I saw what she did to my mother." Harry said strongly.

McGonagall nodded her head as her eyes misted. "But if she attacked your mother, why wasn't she-" Harry grimaced a bit. "They only get removed if they used magic to harm." Harry said bitterly. McGonagall nodded and soon they were back in their usual seats.

**As soon as Hagrid closed the door, they all slipped out. Harry was sure he heard Leo call him 'Professor Snivellous' along with other insults he was sure he learned from Sirius.**

Lily glared at Sirius. Sirius didn't notice as he grinned at his son.

"**Something's been killing your roosters?" Luna asked. "Yeah." Hagrid said. "Is it some fox, or animal?" Aries asked. "Nah, nothin' ate 'em. They're jus' left a big bloody mess." Hagrid said. **

"That's really odd." Frank said. Xenophilius opened his mouth to say something when Liliana hurried up her reading.

**Hagrid ushered them up back to the castle with a note that said 'These students were helping me with work—Hagrid.'**

Everyone not in Slytherin shook their head fondly at the so-Hagrid move.

"**Normally an animal would eat the prey they killed." Aries puzzled as they walked inside the castle.**

Remus nodded.

"**Maybe that's the blood used to write the message on the wall!" Ron said as he lowered a fist into his palm.**

Several people paled badly.

"**Oh Merlin." Neville whimpered. "That's disgusting." Velvela said with a scrunched nose. **

Several people made similar sentiments.

"**So why roosters though?" Leo asked. "Maybe since they were easy to get to? Hagrid did have a bunch of them." Ron pointed out. "Yeah, they were in a big coop near the hut." Aries said with a nod.**

"Shouldn't his dog guard the things then?" Barty asked. "Fang's a coward." The three from the future chorused.

"**I don't know about you lot, but I can't wait for holiday." Neville said nervously. Leo nodded with him, and Harry had to agree. Eventually the term came to an end and they all boarded the train to go spend Christmas with their families.**

Everyone smiled to various degrees at the mentions of spending time with family.

"**I wonder if we'll go visit Bill or Charlie." Ron wondered as he dug around a box of jelly beans.**

Septimus looked briefly puzzled, before shrugging his confusion to make room for Christmas fuzzy feelings.

**Leo couldn't sit still. "This will be my second Christmas with Papa!" He said giddily as Harry passed him a box of peppermint toads. Harry noticed the sad looks Neville, Luna, Velvela and Ron shared. **

Everyone looked sad. "This time around though, we'll make sure you never miss a Christmas with us." Shizuka said. Sirius snuggled her gently and Leo couldn't stop the smile on his face.

"**Second?" Ron asked thickly. "Mmhmm." Leo said with a grin. "This will be the best Christmas ever!" Leo cheered as Aries nodded alongside him. Harry couldn't help but smile too.**

James looked down sullenly. Liliana gripped his hand and James looked at her. She gave him a reassuring smile and James nodded with a wobbly smile.

They didn't notice the dreamy looks Dorea was directing at her husband or the warm, yet distant look in Harry's eyes. But Aries noticed something in the midst of sorrow, regret and loves. A growing sprout of jealousy and want that seemed to nag uncomfortably at his nerves. He turned his eyes slightly and saw the source.

Aries was wondering if it was a good idea to bring Lily Evans after all.

**Soon they all got on the platform. Ron waved goodbye as he went to his parents and brothers. The twins gave Aries and Leo a goodbye noogie, to which the cousins swore that they would get payback when school started again.**

Seve3ral people chuckled. Sirius and Septimus being the loudest.

"**Bye, guys." Neville said as his Gran walked over towards them and welcomed Neville warmly. Velvela and Luna each gave them a warm hug goodbye as they went to their parents.**

Xenophilius grinned at the idea of spending Christmas with his little Luna.

"**Boys!" Sirius cheered happily as he ran towards them. He picked each of them up in a tight hug. **

"He's like the puppy you leave behind." James, Remus and the boys intoned. Sirius blushed a bit as Shizuka hugged him.

"**So good to have you boys back." Sirius said with a warm look in his pale grey eyes. "Down boy." Remus chuckled before they hugged him too. **

"Next time use a training collar." Leo said. Sirius gave a mock look of hurt. "I'm betrayed by my own son!" He wailed over dramatically.

"**Is Sirius being a fool again?" Aunt Andy asked. "Mum, this is Sirius we're talking about." A voice behind her said.**

Andromeda and Ted looked shocked. Then they looked down at their pink and blue haired two year old daughter.

"**Tonks!" Leo cheered before running around her and giving her a hug. **

"She goes by Tonks?" Ted asked. "Sometimes she goes by Dora." Aries said with a sad tinted smile.

**Tonks, or her real name is Nymphadora, was a young woman with a pale heart shaped face and dark twinkling eyes, dressed like a punk with short spikey plum colored hair.**

"Punk!?" Andromeda asked in shock. "Where do you think Ree was inspired to go punkish?" Leo asked as he gestured over to his cousin. Aries shrugged. "I had several influences, but she's an important one." Aries said.

"Actually this is toned down for Aries." Harry mentioned. Regulus was giving his son a look. "I have some issues with that this time around." The younger Black brother said.

**Leo thought she was so cool, especially when she changed her hair color.**

"It's awesome!" Alice cooed as Teddy and Nymphadora changed their hair to a matching bubblegum pink.

"**Hello Tonks." Moony said kindly. She grinned at him.**

The three from the future shared a look that clearly said 'we know something you don't.'

"**Dromeda, you shouldn't tease Sirius so much." Uncle Ted said in his usual mellow and pleasant voice. Tonks grinned and turned her hair the same fair color her dad sported.**

Teddy tried, but he still had some pink streaks in it. Several people cooed at the baby Remus was holding. "So Teddy inherited the metamorphmagi talent?" Bellatrix asked. Harry nodded stiffly. "His mother was a metamorphmagi." Leo said sadly. The room was a bit gloomy, so Liliana read on.

"**Come on, we have a holiday to enjoy!" Sirius cheered before they all apparated back home.**

Everyone grinned. "_Finite."_ Liliana said as she ended the chapter with a warm smile.


	12. Chapter 12

**{Okay so this chapter has some drama in it and some mentions of boys kissing. Hope you don't mind.}**

Barty picked the book up eagerly wanting to see what happens next.

**Chapter 12. The Party**

Aries and Harry laughed as Leo went a deep ruddy pink.

**Sirius was glad to have the boys home. Well, technically it was still 12 Primmauld Place, but he would have a new home for them by their next break. Thankfully the place was cleaned and brightened up. **

Everyone looked surprised. "I thought you would go somewhere else." Regulus admitted.

**He kept most of the original fixtures if only so that the boys could learn a bit more about the place. That and when the one time he shifted to Padfoot, his brother told him to keep it as much the same as possible or he'll find a way to neuter him from beyond the grave. **

"I said what?" Regulus asked. "I think you spent a lot of time with him" Leo pointed at James "as a spirit."

**Sirius also thought that his brother spent too much time near James if he could actually say something that James himself would say.**

"That was one time." "You threatened to turn me into a cat." "Yeah, well you threatened to eat all my left socks." "Why am I friends with you two?"

**And whether it was silly or that he picked up Shizu's superstitious-ness, he kept it was much the same as humanly possible.**

Sirius blushed as several people cooed at him.

**However, he for the life of him could not get his mother's portrait off the wall. **

"Does she always scream?" Arcturus asked. "Yep." Leo said as he popped the 'p.'

**So when Tonks accidently dropped a trunk on Leo foot, Leo's shout woke his dear old mother up.  
><strong>"She got my clumsiness?" Ted asked as he rubbed the back of his neck. Those from the future nodded. "Marevlous." Ted sighed.

"**SHAME OF MY FLESH! DEFILERS OF MY FATHER'S HOUSE!" Sirius started to close the curtain with Remus' help. "SHUT UP YOU OLD HAG! SHUT UP!" Sirius shouted as he managed to get the curtain closed.**

"How can we still hear after that?" Harry asked.

"**Can't you get rid of the portrait?" Andromeda asked thickly. "It's been permanently stuck to the wall." Remus said. **

Several people grimaced.

"**Why don't you just remove the wall then?" Aries asked. Sirius slapped his hand against his forehead. Why didn't they think of that?**

"Because I am awesome."

"**Where do we put it then?" Remus asked. "Give it to Kreacher. He hoards my mother and brother's stuff." Sirius muttered.**

"Really?" Bellatrix asked with a scrunched nose. "I saw him rub his face in an old pair of grandmother's bloomers." Leo said win disgust. Everyone shuddered.

**Seriously Regulus, why did you like this house-elf?**

"He treated me well, and it seems right to do the same." Regulus said. "But he's just a house-elf." Lucius pointed out. Regulus ignored him and noticed Aries smiling at him.

**Aries frowned a bit. "Don't worry, Aries, you still have that trunk." Sirius reminded with a smile.**

Aries grinned a bit.

**After the boys' things were unpacked Sirius began to decorate for Christmas with them. **

"Oh no." The two marauders whined.

**He sang Deck the Halls at the top of his lungs with Leo as they hung stockings on the fireplace. Remus was laughing good naturedly at them as he helped Andy get lunch. Aries was hanging tinsel with Dora, and Harry was hanging wreathes with Ted. **

"It's now a tradition." The three said.

**When they were all done they worked on the Christmas tree Sirius bought earlier today. The boys hung ornaments and strings of beads around the tree. It warmed Sirius' heart. **

Sirius smiled happily.

**Although for some reason they decided to top the tree all by themselves. Sirius couldn't see how, they were all short for their ages.**

"This time around I'll be making sure you boys are your proper heights." Andromeda said determinedly.

**Sirius laughed when he saw Aries holding Leo on his shoulders as Harry was on Leo's shoulders putting the star on top if the tree.**

"We still do that." Leo pointed out. "But now we let Teddy top the tree." Harry added as Teddy babbled up at Remus.

**They managed to get the star on at a jaunty angle, but Sirius loved it. **

"Now were ready for the holidays!" Sirius barked.

**The Tonks stayed for dinner and they talked over various things such as Dora's Auror test, Ted's encounter with a wizard who was wearing a kilt wrong, and Andy's visit to St. Mungo's.**

The three from the future shared a knowing look.

"**Aries if you want you can meet your mother during the holiday." Andy said suddenly. **

Everyone was shocked. "We finally get to meet Saorise!" Alice cheered. Regulus was curious and kept shooting glances at Aries.

**Aries spat his pumpkin juice on Leo. "Why am I the spit take target?" Leo asked indignantly as Sirius wiped his face.**

"Still to this day." Leo muttered.

"**You met my Mum?" Aries asked in shock. Andy nodded. "I don't know why she's hospitalized, she seems perfectly fine. All she would ask about was you. She told me she wrote you many letters, but you never replied." Andromeda said.**

"Wait what!?" Sirius asked in confusion. "Then why is she there?" Arcturus asked. "You'll find out." Aries said as he averted his eyes.

**Sirius looked at Aries. He tried to put on a tough look, but Sirius could see in his nephew's dark eyes that he was holding himself together by a thread. "He'll let you know soon Andy." Sirius said kindly.**

Aries didn't really look at anyone.

**She nodded. Dora managed to lighten the mood by changing her nose to various shapes and sizes. Soon dinner was over and the Tonks went home. **

The little girl gave herself a fluffy squirrel tail that kept swiching.

"**I should go too." Remus said. "You sure you don't want to stay Moony?" Sirius asked. "Please Moony?" Leo asked with Padfoot patented puppy eyes. "I can't, and those eyes will never work on me." Remus said with a laugh. **

"Immune." Remus declared proudly. Teddy looked up at him with big amber eyes and he melted after ten seconds.

**They said their goodbyes and Remus apparated. As Sirius was putting the now clean dishes away, Harry walked up to him. "Sirius, you know that thing we called you about at the dueling club?" Harry asked. **

"We'll teach you this time around Harry." Charlus said kindly. Harry grinned.

"**Yeah?" Sirius asked. "We found something. We think it's barrier manipulation." Harry said. Sirius stumbled a bit with a plate. "Barriers?" Sirius asked.**

Harry nodded at him.

**Sirius put his hands on the counter and sank deeply into thought. "Sirius?" Harry asked. "It makes sense actually." Sirius said. "What makes sense?" Harry asked. **

"Many things."

"**Well, let me tell you a couple of things about your dad. Did you know he could ignore an impirius curse?" Sirius asked. **

"WHAT!?" Everyone asked. James went sheepish. "James is actually rather talented with non-physical barriers." Charlus added. "Non-physical?" Lily asked. "NO SPOILERS!"

"**WHAT?" Harry asked in shock. "Yeah. Several Death Eaters and black magic users tried and failed to control him. Also no one could read his mind. My mother tried every time she saw him and would always shout at me for finding a way to keep his mind blocked." Sirius said.**

"SHE DID WHAT!?" Dorea asked viciously. Sirius scooted away from her direction.

"**Really?" Harry asked curiously. Sirius nodded. My father also mentioned how it was impossible to read your granddad's mind." Sirius added. **

Charlus raised an eyebrow.

"**So I can create these barriers?" Harry asked. **

James nodded jerkily.

"**I think it's a skill that you get taught to control—but don't worry, we'll find a way for you to get the hang of this!" Sirius said quickly when he notice his god son's downward glance. Harry brightened up a bit. **

"Thank you Pads." "No problem."

"**I also took this from the library." Harry said as he handed Sirius a folded piece of old parchment. Sirius unfolded the parchment with a slight smirk. **

_**Empathy**_

_**This is a rare talent that is usually hereditary.**_

_**Most empaths can feel only certain subjects such as people, plants or animals.**_

_**However there have been a few rare accounts of an empath capable of feeling multiple subjects. In this case the most common solution known is choosing what **_

_**They feel. Most empaths are feared because of their skill of**_

_**Reading others. Some try to pass of as empaths by reading body language**_

_**Instead of emotion. This is due to the fact that some cultures believe**_

_**Empaths get their powers from-**_

**The rest was smudged badly.**

Aries casted a look at Harry.

**Sirius was interested. He knew that whatever empathy Aries has had to come from his mother. **

Aries nodded.

"**Thanks Harry." Sirius said as he messed his hair up. Harry whined a bit before smiling. "Go up" to bed." Sirius said kindly.**

"You sound like my mum." James said.

**Sirius walked out after finishing the dishes when he found a tired Aries on the couch. "Aries?" Sirius asked as he sat down next to him on the couch. **

Aries was looking up at the ceiling.

"**I can meet my mum." Aries said in shock. "Do you want to meet her?" Sirius asked. "Of course! Aunt Andy said she wants to meet me! And-and-" Sirius stopped his nephew's rambling.**

"Thanks." Aries muttered.

"**I understand Aries, you want to meet her. I don't blame you for being excited." Sirius said gently. Aries hugged him all of a sudden. "Do you think someone kept her there?" Aries asked quietly. Sirius wasn't sure what to say. **

"It happened to me." Sirius said quietly.

"**Maybe. I wouldn't rule anything out yet." Sirius said carefully. Aries hugged him tighter. "We can visit her soon, and maybe we can get her released." Sirius said as he hugged Aries tightly. "That'd be a good Christmas." Aries mumbled.**

Regulus looked intently at his son. He was full grown now, with many hardships on his shoulders.

"**This will be a very important Christmas for our whole family." Sirius agreed "But you need to go and sleep." Sirius said as he ushered Aries upstairs. "We can vist her soon, Aries." Sirius promised.**

Aries smiled a bit to himself.

**The days before Christmas were a busy, joyful time for Sirius. His son was practically running in circles from the excitement.**

Shizuka gave Sirius a shrewd look.

**Harry was acting like James before a big Quidditch game. **

Harry and James shared a grin.

**Aries was constantly smiling and humming Carol of the Bells throughout the house.**

Regulus smiled the tiniest bit.

**Sirius was giddy even if he spent most of his nights wrapping presents and prepping meals. **

"And the Christmas madness begins." Remus joked.

**On Christmas Eve, Remus, the Tonks, the Weasleys, the Longbottoms, The Lovegoods and the Howles came for a party.**

"SWEET!" James cheered.

**Sirius spotted Leo sneaking up on the twins with a handful of snow and chuckled to himself. **

"I missed." Leo admitted.

"**Those boys need to straighten themselves out." Molly huffed. Arthur looked sheepish. "It's fine Molly. They're just having a bit of fun." Arthur said. His wife still huffed. **

Sirius grimaced.

**Percy was talking to Aries about a few books they read.**

"Nerd!" Sirius sang.

**Neville, Ron and Harry were playing Batsu Game like Sirius learned from Shizuka and Remus.**

The marauders grimaced. "What is that?" Septimus asked. "In English it's the Punishment game. One way to play is rock paper scissors, and the loser has to undergo a punishment." Shizuka said. "We had to eat the scrapings off the pans." Harry said with a grimace.

"I had to bend over and get hit in the arse because I laughed." Sirius whined. "Yeesh!" Barty hissed. "That's another version of the Batsu game." Shizuka said. "I couldn't sit for days." Remus said. "I had bruises on my bum." James added.

**Velvela and Luna were playing a card game and trying to get Ginny to play.**

"Ginny didn't really do much at the party." Harry noted.

"**I'm glad my little Luna has so many new friends." Xenophilius said airily. Sirius smiled at the man and his festive red and green robes.**

Xenophilius smiled brightly.

"**Velvela won't stop talking about them." Zef said with a chuckle. "Neville does too, if he takes a break from Herbology." Augusta said kindly.**

Augusta smiled warmly.

**Sirius smiled. "I was planning on bringing Aries to see his mum tomorrow." Sirius mentioned after several friendly topics. **

All of them looked surprised.

"**Where is she?" Dacianna asked. " ." Sirius and Augusta said in unison. "How'd you know?" Sirius asked politely. Augusta looked down at her spiced hot chocolate. "Her room's close to Frank and Alice's." She said quietly. **

The air was tense within the Room of Requirement.

**Sirius felt a stone sink in stomach. "Oh" was all he could say. What could he say? His 'family' had tortured the two to insanity. **

Sirius looked guiltily as Frank and Alice clung to each other. Augusta had tears brimming in her eyes. "We're not going to let that happen again." Leo swore with a definitive look in his eyes. Augusta looked gratefully at the young Black.

**Everyone was pulled out of the gloom by a shriek. Sirius whipped his head around and saw the twins holding Leo up and over their heads. "We claim this git for Gryffindor!" The twins shouted. "Never! Hufflepuff!" Leo shouted causing Velvela and Ted to cheer him on as he squirmed. **

Everyone chuckled a bit.

**Sirius shook his head fondly. Molly on the other hand was complaining about how they were being too rowdy and not spending time together like a good, proper Christmas. Sirius ground his teeth.**

"She can be a bit overwhelming." Septimus sighed.

"**When are they going to come over again?" She asked Sirius. "Maybe next summer." Sirius said as politely as he could.**

"You actually tried?" "Shizuuu!"

"**Oh, I hope so. I've been meaning to give the boys a good hearty celebration for Harry's birthday." She said. Sirius narrowed his eyes. "I'm sure Harry will let you know." Sirius said.**

"Um, Sirius has say over the birthdays lady." Aries said. Leo nodded.

"**By the way Arthur, I have this enchanted motorbike I would love to show you." Molly narrowed her eyes again as Arthur looked excitedly at Sirius.**

Septimus had a fond look in his eyes.

"**Really?" Arthur asked. "Oh, yeah. I built her several years ago and recently got word that Hagrid has her now. I was going to visit when they boys were back in school so I can write down how I enchanted her so I can build a new one." Sirius said. **

"Sure, Hagrid could have her." Sirius said nonchalantly.

"**No Arthur." Molly said sternly. "But Molly-" "No Arthur. It was bad enough with you and that blasted car. I won't stand for an enchanted motorbike." She said sternly as she looked up at her husband. **

Everyone frowned a bit. "Is she usually like that?" Arcturus asked. Septimus nodded and made a hand gesture that said 'so-so.' "Usually it's Mrs. Weasley's way or the highway." Leo added.

"**I invited him so that I have a member of the proper ministry department could over see what I did." Sirius said rigidly. Arthur shot him an appreciative glance as Molly glared at him. **

Dorea frowned and Shizuka wrapped her arms around Sirius.

**Everything went along well after Dacianna started to ask Molly how to make a peppermint fudge.**

Severa people snorted.

**Towards the closing of the party Sirius found Xenophilius in the kitchen. "Ah, hello Sirius. I was wondering if you had any more cider. I find that cider helps me shoo away the Warbblebees." The man said airily.**

"Oh, excellent!" Xenophilius said happily.

**Sirius poured him a glass of cider and offered to sit and talk with him. Sirius sat there mostly listening to Xenophilius talk about strange creatures and his daughter.**

"She's amazing, sir." Aries said.

"**You're lucky y'know." Xenophilius said suddenly, surpising Sirius. "I'd have to disagree with you." Sirius said quietly. **

The room dampened with sorrow and grief.

"**Trust me, you are. You and I have gone through similar troubles, but I envy you." Xenophilus said. "We have?" Sirius asked in confusion. "I lost my wife a couple years ago." Xenophilius said sadly as he lowered his head.**

Xenophilius frowned. "How?" He asked after a tense silence. "She would invent spells and potions a lot. One day an experiment went wrong." Harry said sorrowfully.

"**I'm raising my little Luna for Soleil, all by myself." Xenophilius said as close to broken a man could go without crying. Sirius knew that from experience.**

Everyone was either grief stricken or wincing.

"**I know it's hard. I was kept away from my boys for a whole decade." Sirius said. "But I'm sure others will help you." Sirius said sympathetically. He had Andy's family and Remus when he needed them back in his life.**

Those mentioned smiled.

**Xenophilius actually snorted. "Who? My family chucked me away like a rabid Snorkack when I was a young." The eccentric wizard said. **

If one were to look at the Malfoys, they would notice how they winced badly.

"**I left most of my family behind. And trust me, the Blacks are not the most caring despite how family oriented most claim to be." Sirius said as he lowered his eyes.**

"That's not entirely true." Regulus said quietly. "Yeah." Narcissa said. Arcturus was looking carefully at all the members of the house of Black. How many of them felt like Sirius?

"**But you still had some family to fall back on. I highly doubt my family will." Xenophilius said sadly.**

Lucius and Abarax shared a brief look before looking at Xenophilius who was ignoring them.

"**Sometimes I see my brother when I go out. I'm used to him acting like I don't exist anymore, but after Soleil's death, it just seems harder." Xenophilius said lowly.**

Xenophilius looked down.

"**For a long time my brother and I acted like total strangers. We even battled on opposite sides during the war."**

At this point Sirius looked down.

"**Just be thankful that you still have a brother. I lost mine when he was eighteen, and all for my parent's stupid pride and prejudice." Sirius said gruffly as he squeezed his eyes tightly. **

Barty looked at Regulus in shock for a moment.

"**I was actually so close to naming my own son after him." Sirius said with a chuckle. **

"Huh?" Leo asked in shock. Regulus looked at Sirius with wide eyes. Sirius grinned back sadly.

"**But, Shizuka talked me out of it. Especially since we were raising Aries after his death." **

Shizuka hugged Sirius tightly.

**Sirius could feel Xenophilius look at him. They sat there like that for several minutes. "You've met my brother." Xenophilius said. **

"What?" Several people asked. Lucius looked a bit uncomfortable.

**Sirius looked up in confusion. "I have?" Sirius asked. "In fact I believe he married your cousin. They have a son Leo's age." Xenophilius said.**

Everyone was stock still.

**Sirius went rigid. "Your brother is Lucius Malfoy?" He hissed. Xenophilius nodded. "I was disowned when I was nine, and adopted by the Lovegoods."**

Everyone slowly turned towards the two Malfoys. "Xenophilius is your son?" Arcturus asked in surprise. Abarax nodded. "Why?" Charlus asked in shock. Abarax averted his eyes. Lucius looked down and Narcissa held his hand. "Lucius?" She asked. He was silent.

**Sirius balked. How many times did he hear the rumors about the Malfoys from his father? They were rather secretive with their kids, in fact some people rarely ever saw them before they went to school. **

The foreign and muggleborn listeners were shocked. "And I thought Sirius had it bad." Dorea muttered to Charlus lowly.

**In fact the only way he knew about Narcissa's son before Azkaban was because of the Black family grapevine.**

Abarax and Lucius were still silent.

"**So the old rumors about the Malfoys having twins was true?" Sirius asked. Xenophilius nodded a bit. "My mother believed that I was the inferior twin. My father never did anything against her, but he held off on her request for nine years." Xenophilius said. **

"Mother didn't want me." Xenophilius said. Abarax looked down at his lap. Lucius just walked out and into a different room. "Go." Moody said gruffly as he gestured his head at the door Lucius went off into.

Xenophilius nervously walked towards the door and opened it. Inside he saw Lucius with his back turned towards him. "Lucius." Xenophilius said nervously. Lucius didn't move. "Bad case of wrackspurts?" Xenophilius asked.

"You know that it was a mistake." Lucius said. "A big bloody lie." Lucius said in a cracked voice. "What?" Xenophilius asked. "About who mother didn't want! I was the second son, but you took all of her abuse!" Lucius said as he finally turned around to face Xenophilius.

"Of course I would." Xenophilius said. "You're my brother. It wasn't hard to switch places, no one could ever tell us apart. Only the two of us." Xenophilius said. "You knew what would happen to you." Lucius said with a pained look in his sharp eyes.

"And by the time they found out which twin was which, we were already accepted to Hogwarts." Xenophilius said with a nod. "And you never spoke to me since I was disowned." Xenophilius said.

"I wanted to but mother-" "She made you act as if you didn't have a brother." Xenophilius said unabashedly. "I was terrified of what she'd do if she found out I talked to you. You know how cruel she could be." Lucius said. Xenophilius gave him a dazed, but knowing look.

"I understand. Neither of us were brave. You did what you had to to survive living with her and I used my head to keep you safe." Xenophilius said. "How come you're not in Gryffindor?" Lucius asked after a tense silence.

"I thought we could be brothers at Hogwarts, that's why I switched." Xenophilius admitted. They stood there in a tense silence. "Mother is dying." Lucius said. "She's in France being treated."

"Oh" was all Xenophilius said. "So she won't find out if we rekindle then?" Xenophilius asked. Lucius looked at him strangely. "You want to be brothers again?" he asked.

Xenophilius smiled. "Last time I checked we never stopped being brothers."

Soon the two walked back together and sat in their seats. Abarax looked at the two. He didn't say anything, and lowered his eyes. Barty looked at them all before going back to reading.

"**Then your father was stronger than mine. My mother ruled the house with an iron fist. My father would only do thing behind her back." Sirius said derisively.**

Arcturus looked questioningly at Sirius and Regulus. "Is this true?" He asked. "Mother…does what she thinks is best." Regulus said uncomfortably.

"Even if it isn't legal." Sirius said as he wrapped his arms around himself. Dorea looked close to tears and Charlus looked sadly at the two brothers. "Perhaps I should have a talk with that son of mine." Arcturus said.

"Please." Leo said. "I've only met her portrait and that's a nightmare in and of itself." Aries said.

"**I don't know about that. I' pretty sure my father had a bad case of Wrackspurts." Xenophilius said airily. **

Several people weakly chuckled.

"**Well, Xenophilius, if you ever need any help, you're always welcome." Sirius said.**

Xenophilius gave Sirius a confused look.

"**Why?" Xenophilius asked. Sirius gave him a lopsided smile. "Because WE'RE family." Sirius said.**

Xenophilius looked shocked before grinning back at him.

"**You know, I was meaning to ask about the ministry's Heliopaths, do you think Arthur will know anything about them?" Xenophilius asked. "We could always go and ask." Sirius said as they both rose from their seats in the kitchen.**

Several people cracked smiles.

**They rejoined the adults when he saw most of the kids laughing. Sirius turned and saw a red faced Weasley twin, Leo scarlet red and ignoring everyone since the kids, and Nymphadora were laughing for some reason.**

Leo shrank in his seat as Harry and Aries snickered.

"**What did I miss?" Sirius asked as he saw several galleons being divided. "George and Leo got stuck under an enchanted mistletoe." Harry sniggered.**

"Really?" Shizuka asked. Leo nodded and slid further down in his seat.

"**Oh bollocks." Sirius groaned. He was not ready for this. His son should be an innocent little trouble maker with no concept of these things. Why did fate throw bludgers into his plans?**

"Cause life is unfair and unpredictable?" Xenophilius offered.

"**And?" Sirius asked after a while. "We bet on whether or not George was brave enough to snog his way out." Fred snorted. Sirius slapped a hand against his face. He needs alcohol if this was going the way he thought it would. **

"Alcoholic." Aries coughed.

"**And?" Sirius prompted. **

"Leo's first kiss was with George!" Aries cackled.

**Then he saw the money being tossed at Velvela. "Who won?" Xenophilius asked airily. "Forge my old man, did it." Fred said with a smirk.**

Septimus put a hand over his eyes.

**George went red and gave his twin the v. Sirius really needed booze. Where's the spiked egg nog?**

"You boys drive me to drink." Sirius moaned.

**Remus held his hand out and galleons were deposited. **

"MOONY!?" "What, you bet all the time?"

**Sirius was staring at shock at his best friend. "You bet on my son, your god son, sucking face at the age of twelve with a boy?" Sirius asked in shock.**

"And won." Remus tacked on.

**Remus looked innocently at him. "You made at least a dozen bets on your god son, and if memory recalls weren't you in a similar predicament?" Remus pointed out.**

Sirius barely blushed. "You bet on my son?" Liliana asked sternly. "Not yet!" He defended.

"**Really?" Aries asked curiously. "Shut up Moony." Sirius growled as he and Xenophilius moseyed back to the other parents. **

"Ugh, I'm a grown up." Sirius whined.

"**It was a sight to see." Nymphadora said with a giggle. "Please stop. You sound like Shizuka when she read romance novels." Sirius said. As much as he loved his wife, he refuses to think about her choices concerning literature. And she somehow corrupted Lana too, James used to complain.**

James looked confused as Sirius and Remus averted looking at Shizuka.

**Leo looked up at him with a deep pink on his face. "I'm not saying anything about it for today." Sirius said. Soon Sirius put the mistletoe incident at the back of his mind and focused on talking to the other adults about work, and the news.**

"Ugh."

"**I hope someone deals with this monster. I'm constantly debating whether to pull Vela out until they do." Zef said worriedly. "I second that." Augusta said as she casted a look at her grandson who was playing chess with Ron.**

"We all do." The current parents said, not noticing a shared look between the three from the future.

"**I'm sure Dumbledore will get everything sorted out soon." Arthur said. "He always does." Molly added. Sirius used every ounce of will power not to snort and roll his eyes. He almost failed. **

"I should work on having Arthur change his outlook on the man."

"I know that there's a Board of Governors meeting within the month." Sirius added.

"Hopefully they can get some Aurors on the scene before this could get any worse." Andromeda said worriedly.

"Hopefully." Sirius agreed.

**Soon the guests left with merry wishes and happy new years. Sirius walked back and saw the boys listening intently to Remus as he was telling them a story. Sirius sat down next to them as he got a good sized amount of boozy egg nog. **

"I think you had four kinds of liquor in that." Leo said.

"**So in our fourth year, James and Sirius decided to put enchanted mistletoes on the door way to our dorm room. However, they managed to get stuck." Remus said. **

Everyone laughed at the two embarrassed animagi.

**Aries was the only one that laughed. Leo was still hiding in his sweater and Harry was shocked. **

"I could have gone my whole life not knowing that Moony." Harry said. "You swore never to mention this again!" Sirius shouted. "Too bad." Remus said offhandedly.

"**And to make matters worse they modified the mistletoe." Remus tacked on. Sirius started to chug the drink at this point.**

"You are a sadist disguised as an innocent chocolate eating book worm." James whined. Remus wore this expression that said 'Who? Me?'

"**So my dad and Sirius did what Leo and George did?" Harry asked as he balked. "Yep." Remus added. "Anything you would like to add Padfoot?" **

"NOPE."

**Sirius looked at them. "The first thing James said after that was 'Gingerbread.'" Sirius said unabashedly. **

"SIRIUS!" "Sorry, mate!"

**Harry and Leo couldn't look at each other for a good half an hour. **

"It was incredibly awkward." Harry amended.

**Then Remus had to leave. "Tell them any more about the mistletoe and I'll tell them about the rabies." Sirius said as he gave his friend a good bye hug. Remus snorted and said he had more dirt on him. **

Sirius grumbled a bit."What'd George taste like?" Aries asked with a smirk. Leo blushed and muttered "candy cane."

**Soon Sirius was distracting them by pulling out the old photo albums. They all laughed at the picture with the three of them on their little toy brooms. Harry was zooming around the place, Leo was constantly spinning in circles and Aries kept trying to grab a shiny gold tree ornament shaped like a snitch.**

Everyone lightened up and laughed joyfully.

**Soon everyone was tired and Harry trudged up tiredly. "Boys, we're going to visit someone tomorrow." Sirius said. **

"Saorise!" Several people cheered.

**They all nodded. Leo somehow managed to fall asleep.**

**Aries and Harry wandered into their rooms with a yawn. Sirius put a sleeping Leo in his bed, instinctively like from when he was a baby.**

Several people cooed at the two of them.

**As Sirius was about to leave the room he heard Leo shift around. **

"I don't remember waking up." Leo said in confusion.

"**Sirius." Leo said. Sirius stiffened. Leo never called him that.**

Everyone was confused.

**Sirius turned and saw Leo sitting upright with a strange glazed look in his eyes. Sirius immediately panicked. "Leo?" Sirius asked in a whisper. "Sorry, not him." Leo said cheekily with a smirk. **

"I'm possessed!?"

**Sirius narrowed his eyes. "Padfoot, I won't do anything to hurt Paddy Jr." Leo said. Sirius went rigid. "James?" Sirius breathed.**

Everyone was quite.

**Leo—James nodded. "Sorry I had to use Leo like this, but it's harder to talk when you're a dog." James said. Sirius pulled him into a tight hug. "I missed you Prongs." Sirius said quietly. **

Sirius and James gave each other a tight brotherly hug.

**He hugged Sirius back tightly. "We never really left you know. We watched over the lot of you." James said. **

Everyone smiled sadly.

**Sirius hugged him tightly as his throat tightened. "Why're you talking now?" Sirius asked. "It's about Harry." James said seriously.**

Harry looked shocked.

**Sirius held him at arm's length and looked concerned. "What about Harry?" Sirius asked in a whisper. "His talent." James whispered. "The barriers?" Sirius asked. James nodded. "He needs to control it. Otherwise it will spark up whenever he gets too emotional." James warned. **

Aries and Leo casted a look at Harry.

"**But how can he be taught?" Sirius asked. "There's no one to teach him, and I don't like the idea of my son being possessed Prongs." Sirius said. **

"I know I wouldn't." Septimus said.

"**I know, I know. Listen Pads, my dad left a hidden book in Potter Manor in case something like this should happen. It's hidden behind his favorite portrait of Mum." James said. **

"Favorite portrait?" Augusta asked. "He had about a dozen." Harry said. Dorea blinked and smiled at her blushing husband.

"**Also in the main Potter vault there should be a self-updating portrait of me and Lana. We can talk to you guys through the portrait at times as well." Sirius nodded. **

Everyone smiled.

"**Thanks Prongs." Sirius said gratefully.**

James smiled.

**James made Leo smirk. "Oh, by the way: Gingerbread."**

"You prat!"

**Sirius wasn't sure whether to be sad, happy or angry that James left after that bit.**

"That's the end of the chapter." Barty said. "Oh, me next!" Charlus said. "Hold on." Regulus said. "What's up?" Sirius asked. "I don't want to find out about Saorise." Regulus said.

"I want to leave."


	13. Chapter 13

Everyone was staring at Regulus in shock. "What?" Aries asked quietly. "I don't want to hear about her." Regulus repeated. "Why?" Sirius asked in sock. "Well, if I know more about her, I could change the future in a way that results in Aries not being born." Regulus said.

Aries looked at him in shock. "You'd give up your memories of this so that I would still be born?" Aries asked. Regulus nodded. "You're a talented and intelligent wizard. I don't think I could ask for a better son." Regulus said with a small smile.

Aries stood up and enveloped his father in a tight hug. Regulus returned it. "Good luck Da." Aries whispered. "I'll keep you alive this time you git!" Sirius said with a sad smile. Regulus pulled him in for a hug too.

"I'm leaving." Regulus said. Not even a heartbeat after he had said that he vanished down a black void that appeared beneath his feet.

Soon everyone was a bit shell shocked as Charlus opened the book and began to read.

**Chapter 13. Mother**

There were mixed feelings about this title.

**It was Christmas day and Aries was a nervous wreck. He was standing outside of St. Mungos hospital with his family.**

Everyone was a bit anxious about this visit.

**Uncle Sirius smiled reassuringly at him as he ushered him inside of the building. **

Aries smiled at Sirius.

**Uncle Sirius walked to the receptionist's desk and Aries, Leo and Harry followed him closely.**

"Like a mother hen." Septimus chuckled, much to the ire of four individuals.

**The receptionist was a blonde witch maybe a few years younger than Aunt Andy, who kept twirling her hair. **

"Just what we need—a bimbo." Barty snorted.

"**Hello. We're here to visit Soarise Black." Uncle Sirius said. She looked at Uncle Sirius with a strange sense of hunger that confused Aries. **

"I believe it was lust." Aries amended. Shizuka frowned and wrapped her arms around Sirius, who blushed and grinned sheepishly at her actions.

"**Relation to patient?" The receptionist asked huskily. **

Shizuka's arms tightened.

"**I'm her brother in law, Sirius Black. I brought her son, Aries, my son Leo, and my godson Harry with me." Sirius said.**

"At least she's more subtle." Remus said. Sirius yelped when he felt a tight pressure against his ribs.

**She looked down her nose at Leo and hurried along with her job. **

Sirius frowned deeply, and narrowed his eyes at the book.

**Aries zoned out as he wondered what his mother was like. He only knew her from an old picture and vague mentions in Uncle Sirius' stories.**

Everyone looked at Aries sadly. "Harry had it worse." He mumbled. Everyone grimaced. Harry ignored them and motioned for his grandfather to keep reading.

**Aries tightened his grip on his father's journal. He didn't read any of it yet. He was a bit hesitant after finding his Da's old room, but he couldn't bring himself to leave it behind. **

Aries blushed just the tiniest bit at the coos the girls were giving him.

"**C'mon boys." Uncle Sirius said. Aries followed him down a hallway into the Mental Ward. Aries was kinda scared by all the screams and hysterics he heard down the hallway. **

Several people shuddered.

**Uncle Sirius stopped him in front of a bland door. On the side of the doorway said 'Saorise Black' on a small plaque that made Aries even more nervous. **

Aries looked up at the ceiling to ignore everyone's looks.

**Aries watched the plaque nervously. What if his mum wasn't better? What if she liked the pro-pureblood stuff his Da did? What if she didn't want him? What if-?**

"I'd still be there for you." Sirius said. Aries smiled happily at Sirius.

"**Sirius." Neville's Gran said as she walked towards them with Neville. Neville was holding a large tin of candies. "I remember you saying that you would visit today." Mrs. Longbottom said. Uncle Sirius nodded. **

Everyone was confused and upset over who would put the Longbottoms into such a terrible position. No one noticed the three casting dirty looks at a couple of Slytherins.

**Neville kept looking at Aries with a strange expression on his face. Aries couldn't make sense of his emotions. There was so much pity and regret in the air Aries felt like he would choke on it. **

Aries furrowed his brows. Even to this day he couldn't un-muddle Neville's feeling of that day.

**Aries fingered the necklace in his pocket in case it got worse.**

Aries tugged at it with a single finger.

"**Go on Aries. We'll be out here if you need us." Uncle Sirius said with a bright smile. Aries looked over at Leo and Harry. They gave him a comforting smile each. **

"Of course." Harry and Leo said.

**Aries swallowed thickly and opened the door. He walked inside and closed the door slowly. **

Several people were at the edge of their seats with anticipation.

**He took about two steps before an Irish heavy voice trilled "Aries?" Aries looked up and saw her. She looked maybe a few years older than his picture. Her long curly blonde hair was tied back messily and her violet eyes looked at him carefully.**

Everyone looked sad and happy.

**Aries nodded as he felt tears sting his eyes. "Yeah." He said in a wobbly voice.**

Aries lowered his dark eyes to the table as he rested his chin on his palm.

**She started to cry and she jumped out of her bed and pulled him into a tight hug. "Aries." She sobbed as she rocked him. Aries cried into her shoulder and wrapped his arms around her. "I missed you so much **_**a stór**_**." She whispered into his hair.**

"What does that mean?" Lily asked. "My treasure." Aries replied with a thick voice.

**Aries hugged her tightly. She tilted his head up and she smiled at him softly and Aries can't stop crying. **

Shizuka let go of Sirius and hugged Aries. Aries hugged her back after his shock slowly went away.

**She sat the both of them down on the stiff hospital mattress. "I missed you so much." She said in a thin voice. Aries hugged her again. "So so very much." She said. **

Aries hid his face in his aunt's shoulder.

"**Now, tell your dear old Mam what you've been through without me." She said in a silvery voice that comforted Aries a bit. **

Several people smiled a bit.

**Aries sobbed as he uneasily held onto his Da's journal as he told her about his life. **

Several people winced badly and Harry secretly shot Lily a dirty look that only Moody noticed.

**She looked sad for most of it, but she stopped him as he was starting to tell her about the summer he found out he was a wizard. **

Everyone except Aries was confused.

"**No need t' tell me, I already know." She said as she placed a small hand on his shoulder. "How? I was at that shack and then Hogwarts and-" Aries stopped when he heard a squeak from his robe's pocket. **

"When did she get there?" Harry asked. "I didn't even notice her." Aries admitted.

**Tawny squeaked and crawled out of his pocket and stopped by his Mam's fingertips. "You've done well, Tawny." Saorise said as she stroked the little dormouse's head. **

"How does she know your dormouse is named Tawny?" James asked. Aries didn't give an answer as his aunt ended the hug and went back to her seat.

"**How did you know her name was Tawny?" Aries asked in shock. **

Some people grumbled.

**She looked at him, and down to the book in his hand. "Your Da's journal." She said quietly. "What about it?" Aries asked. She gave him a kind smile. "It mentions in that journal." She said. **

"She knows about that too?" Sirius asked in shock.

**Aries was shocked. She picked the book up and held it closed. "We can talk about it another day. Anything you absolutely need to know?" She asked in a kind tone that made his heart hurt. **

Several people looked a bit sad.

"**I-I can feel what other people are feeling. And I can't stop it." Aries said in a not as hysterical as he thought he would sound. **

Several people looked at him strangely. "He had a panic attack, what twice?" Harry asked. Leo nodded. "Not a pretty sight."

**She hugged him again and Aries leaned into his mother's side. "It's alright, it's alright. It goes away boyo." She reassured him soothingly.**

Sirius smiled a bit.

**Aries started to cry again. He never knew what it was like to have a mother. She smoothed his hair and shushed him.**

Several people looked pitifully at him, but Aries ignored it.

**Aries heard the door open and he hid his face with the thin blanket on the bed. "Sirius." Mam greeted. "Hello Saorise." Uncle Sirius greeted. "And who're these wee badgers?" She asked with a soft voice. **

"Only one of us is a badger." Harry said. Leo nodded proudly.

"**My son Leo, and godson Harry." Uncle Sirius said. "Hi Auntie." Leo greeted brightly. "Hi." Harry said awkwardly. She chuckled a bit. "I hope you've all been doin' well." She said. **

"She seems sweet." Dorea cooed.

"**Saorise I was wondering something." Uncle Sirius said. "Hm?" "Would you like to live with the boys and me?" **

Everyone grinned.

**Aries looked back at him in surprise. He thought he was going to have to leave Uncle Sirius and Leo and Harry behind.**

"Not on your life." Leo said with a smirk.

"**I don't see why not. I have no home or job." Mam said. **

Several people were curious about her.

**Uncle Sirius smiled. "Well then, care to watch the boys while I get you out?" He asked with a knowing smile. "O' course." Mam said with a warm grin.**

"I hope we get to meet her." Dorea said.

**Leo and Harry scooted a bit closer to them as Uncle Sirius walked out of the room with a grin. **

"We revolve around each other." Leo pointed out.

"**Now boyos, care for a bit of a story?" Mam asked. They all nodded eagerly. **

Some people snickered at how young they were acting.

"**Well, why don't I start with how Aries got his name?" She asked.**

They all nodded.

"**You see, Regulus told me he had this tradition in his family. Naming the kids after stars in the sky. At first I thought it was rather daft."**

Several people laughed as most of the Blacks looked offended.

**I thought any child o' mine should have a good down to earth name. A boy o' mine should have a sturdy name like a tall old tree. **

"As if a tree is better than a star." Arcturus huffed.

**Now your Da was very traditional for the most part, 'sides marryin' me, and all that. **

"Wait, what did she mean?" Bellatrix asked with her eyes narrowed at Aries. Aries didn't say anything. "Well for one it wasn't an arranged marriage." Leo pointed out. This settled her down briefly and Aries shot his cousin a thankful look.

**So he came up with a compromise. 'I'll name him after the constellation Aries. He'll be named after the Roman god of war. That's a good strong name.' He said to me. Now, I'm no' a fan of the Romans for several reasons, but I knew that this was important for your Da so I let him name you that.**

Arcturus nodded a bit. At least it was a strong name and nothing strange or weak sounding.

**It was better than some of his other options like Lynx, Orion, Arcturus, and the like. **

Arcturus huffed and narrowed his eyes in annoyance and slight offence.

**Then he let me have my way with your middle name. Rowan. A very strong tree, protective magic to it y'know." She said.**

Aries smiled a bit.

"**Aries Rowan Black, it has a ring to it that we both liked." She said with a grin on her freckled face. Leo smiled at them and asked for another story. That's when Uncle Sirius came in. **

He had a smirk on his face.

"**Well, care to come home sister-dearest?" He asked with a sweeping bow that made Mam laugh. "Well then you boys better leave me to get ready for the trip." She said with a chuckle.**

Shizuka and Liliana shared a smile. They can't wait to meet her.

**They all walked outside and Aries was nervously sitting down next to an empty chair. **

"He has a bad habit of ignoring furniture when he's thinking too much." Leo chimed.

**Leo plopped down into the chair and looked at him understandably. Aries smiled back a lopsided smile. Leo looked closely at Aries. A bit too closely. "Uh, Lee?" Aries asked nervously. **

"It was awkward."

"**Did you know you have freckles coming in?" Leo asked. **

"Really?" Several people asked. Some leaned in close and sure enough, there was a faint splash of freckles on Aries' face.

**Aries leaned away from his cousin. "Huh?" He asked. "Yeah, it's barely there but you have these tiny freckles coming in." Leo pointed out as he poked Aries face. Aries swatted his hand away. **

"No touchy." Nymphadora babbled.

**Soon Mam came out wearing a green and brown dress and carried a tall stack of papers with her. Sirius offered to take the papers from her but she declined.**

"The one time he's a gentleman, and is refused." Remus snorted.

**Uncle Sirius port keyed them all back to Twelve Grimmauld place. **

Leo and Harry shared a look.

**Uncle Sirius gave her the guest room down the hall, but she didn't leave from the living room. She just placed the papers down and sat down on the floor. "So… this is where Regulus grew up." She said airily. **

"She's never been there before?" Arcturus asked. Aries shook his head. "Most of the Blacks didn't even know me and Mam existed if it wasn't for Da's will." Aries said.

"**Yeah, it was actually a lot darker than this. I changed it to make it friendlier for the boys." Uncle Sirius said. **

"Right." Leo and James said sarcastically.

"**Mam." Aries said. She turned to look at him with a warm look in her eyes. Aries wasn't sure why, he felt weird saying it actually.**

"Now he has no problem with it whatsoever." Harry pointed out.

"**You said my-my" "Empathy." Uncle Sirius said. "Right, empathy, will go away. What do you mean?" Aries asked. She looked at him with a slight frown.**

Several people were curious.

"**The empathy won't go away itself, but it dulls down shortly. You won't be constantly hit with the emotions of people. You can learn to focus it to more than that. You can learn the feelings of animals, and even the trees themselves." She said. **

"WHAT!?"

"**How?" Aries asked, so close to begging. All he's wanted was answers. He felt so weak not knowing what was going on with himself. **

"Ravenclaw to a bloody T." Leo huffed good naturedly at his cousin.

"**Same way I learned." She said. "I was even worse off than you boyo. I was feeling everything. Anything that was alive, I could feel. I could feel it grow, its pain, and its death." She said. **

Everyone grimaced.

"**So it is an inherited trait." Sirius said. She nodded. "How long has this been going on?" She asked Aries. "Since I was nine." He admitted. **

"That's too long. You could have hurt yourself." James said worriedly.

**Mam frowned. "This shouldn't have started until you were about eleven or twelve." She said as she stood up and looked over him, worry creasing her pale eye brows. **

Several people casted several worried or confused looks at Aries.

"**And is it just people?" She asked. Aries nodded and she frowned deeper. "Harry, Leo, why don't you both go up and owl your friends?" Uncle Sirius asked. **

"Oh no."

**They both sent Aries concerned glances before they went up to their rooms. **

"And you go along with it." Sirius sighed.

**Tawny squeaked and crawled on top of Aries' hair. "What's up with Aries?" Uncle Sirius asked in a worried fit. **

Sirius was worried even now.

"**Aries, what did you not tell me?" She asked. Aries looked down briefly. "Nothing, I told you everything." He said. **

"Lies." Harry and Leo hissed.

"**Obviously you did not. Who hurt you?" She asked with a stormy look in her violet eyes. Aries looked down, causing Tawny to squeak in a panic. "That would be the Dursley family." Uncle Sirius growled.**

A lot of people were livid.

"**Dursley?" "Muggle family that took the boys in while I was in Azkaban." She grimaced. "I'm glad you got out. I kept saying you weren't a murderer, but nobody believed me. They kept me in on the pretense of insanity." Mam said. **

"Really?" Sirius asked guiltily. "She never once blamed you." Aries said. "She blamed our shitty Ministry." Harry tacked on.

"**At least that's what they put on the papers." Mam said angrily. "But Aries' powers, at least a specific part of them were jump started earlier in order to protect himself." Mam said. **

Several people grimaced. That would mean that Aries life had to have been in danger more than once.

"**But I can take people's injuries for myself." Aries pointed out. "That just hurts me." She looked at him carefully. "It's more than that. If you wanted to, you could have given your injuries to someone else." Mam said. **

"WHAT!?"

**Aries was floored. "I could have what?" He asked in shock. "Of course. Let me show you." Mam said. **

"What, she can do it too?" Barty asked.

**She wandered into the kitchen and came back after a couple of minutes with a knife. **

Several people paled.

**She cut a thin line along her palm. She then put her uncut hand on Uncle Sirius. After a deep pause Uncle Sirius yelped and he held his hand. It was bleeding from a cut on the palm. Mam held both of her hands up and there was no cut on her hand.**

Jaws swung open.

**She apologized to Uncle Sirius as he used a healing spell on his hand. "How can we do that?" Aries asked. Mam sighed and sat down next to Aries on the couch. **

"FINALLY!" Several people said as they were tired of guessing why.

"**Have you ever heard of the Tuatha de Dannan?" Mam asked. Aries shook his head. Uncle Sirius looked confused. "I heard the name. A type of fairy, I think." He said.**

"My father mentioned them once or twice when he had a business deal with Ireland." Sirius pointed out.

**Mam shook her head. "That's a more modern misconception about the Tuatha de Dannan." She said slowly. **

Several people looked shocked.

"**They were the first people to inhabit Ireland. They hailed from four cities, bringing a treasure with them from each. Now, the Tuatha de Dannan were more than human. They were gods. Descended from the great goddess Danu herself. But after years of war, they hid away." Mam said. **

"What do these gods have to do with you?" Narcissa asked.

"**What does that have to do with us?" Aries asked. **

Narcissa blinked a bit.

"**Well you see, the People of Danu were known to marry and have children with humans. Such as my parents."**

"Your mother is a half breed!?" Bellatrix screeched. "You disgrace the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black!" Aries ignored her biting words and took a defensive stance.

She drew her wand quickly and Aries was a fraction too slow as she grazed him with a curse. She vanished down a void and the room was deathly quiet.

"That's why Regulus kept you both a secret." Sirius breathed. Aries rubbed his arm that was bloody and raw from Bellatrix's attack and when he touched a pillow, the pillow was torn open and had stuffing was hanging out this way and that.

**Aries and Uncle Sirius shared a look of shock. **

"Understandable." Dorea said.

**Aries pitched forward and blacked out. **

"That's the end." Charlus said as he closed the book. Aries was moved towards the Potters and his Uncle by Leo and Harry who wanted to put as much distance between him and the rest of the Blacks as possible.

**{So now we meet Saorise! I actually came up with her after watching this animated movie called 'The Secret of the Kells.' It's a really good movie, and I absolutely loved the character, Aislin, who I based Saorise off of. Let me know what you think, and feel free to add any comments or suggestions. Thank you for reading!- CM}**


	14. Chapter 14

There was a bright light and four people were now in the room. One was a tall, lanky red headed man, covered in freckles. One was a tall round faced man with a confident look in his eyes. One was a pale man with silvery hair that didn't make eye contact with anyone. Lastly a young woman with straggly blonde hair and perturbed grey eyes was looking dreamily at all of them.

"Hiya guys!" Leo greeted. "Leo, mate." The red head said as he gave him a brotherly hug. The round faced man did the same, and soon Aries and Harry greeted all but the silver haired man.

"Introduce yourselves you ninnies." Leo chided. "Ron Weasley." "Neville Longbottom." "Luna Lovegood." "…Draco Malfoy."

All of them were being coddled and questioned by their respective families. After everyone had gotten situated Luna spoke up. "Aries how's your arm?" She asked. Aries stiffened slightly. "Fine." He said as he held his arm slightly.

"Obviously not mate. We saw what happened. If you could, you'd have drawn quicker than Bellatrix." Neville said. Andromeda looked worried. "What's wrong Aries?" She asked. Aries sat there, deep in thought.

He rolled up the sleeve of his robe. From his wrist up there were dark red marks that overlapped each other. When Andromeda took a closer look, some of them were heated with inflammation.

"What happened?" Sirius asked in concern. Aries didn't answer. "Aries you can tell us." Shizuka said kindly. "He can't." Draco replied awkwardly. "He can't because it's a part of the story.

They all begrudgingly accepted this as Alice picked up the book and began to read the next chapter.

**Chapter 14. Kidnapping and Bets**

Harry, Ron, Neville, and Aries groaned. Leo blushed a deep pink for some reason.

**Leo didn't want to go back to Hogwarts. He didn't want to leave his Papa and Auntie.**

"Aww." Most of the girls cooed.

**He loved it when Papa would cook meals and tell them all sorts of stories about their family.**

Sirius smiled. "That won't change too much this time around." He said.

**He would be glad to get away from Kreacher though. Papa said Uncle Regulus liked Kreacher for some reason. **

"Creepiest house-elf ever." Leo said definitively.

**Auntie Saorise was… pretty cool. She would often sing Irish songs throughout the house and she would always try to help out around the house whenever she could. But Leo liked how she just… accepted everything. **

This brought several smiles onto faces.

**She had no problems with Moony, in fact the first thing she did was give him a hug.**

Moony blinked in shock. Teddy yipped and giggled up at Remus.

**She loved chatting with Tonks about her Metamorphmagi abilities.**

Nymphadora giggled and gave herself floppy bunny ears that matched her pink hair.

**She also just laughed when Papa turned into a large black dog one afternoon. **

Several people chuckled a bit.

**Then again, she's basically a demi-god. This probably doesn't even cover the spectrum of weird for her. **

Aries smiled a bit. "Demi-god. My little brother manages to tie a not with the daughter of a god." Sirius said in wonder. Arcturus looked contemplative. "I'm kinda surprised that only Bellatrix tried to kill me." Aries admitted.

"Well, she does tend to overdo things in the name of Black." Andromeda said sadly. "So I take it this revelation will get me blasted off the family tree." Aries said. Arcturus spoke up then. "Maybe not." The Head of the Black family said.

"While most refuse to mix blood, a demi-god in the family would be welcomed by a few." Arcturus said. "What about keeping the family always pure?" Leo questioned. Arcturus looked at the two of them.

"There are various definitions of pure. Most of the family has taken it to mean purely wizard blood. While there are some who believe in keeping it strictly with magical blood." The patriarch said.

"It's not unheard of to have non-humans marry into a family." Charlus admitted. "Some keep it a secret and a few are open about it. It usually depends on the specifics."

Aries looked contemplative as Alice continued reading.

**No, weird for Auntie was when she came with them at King's Cross. She started to cry as she said her goodbyes. **

"I don't blame her."

**Her crying got the attention of the Weasley family.**

"It was very loud." Ron clarified.

**As they came to them most of the Weasleys were smiling except a glaring Mrs. Weasley **

"Mum thought that she was Sirius' girlfriend." Ron said. Everyone spluttered a bit. "I won't ever try to replace Shizu!" Sirius said fiercely as he held the Japanese witch protectively.

**and a sick looking Ginny. "Hiya guys!" Leo greeted happily. **

"You always pull off happy." Ron said. James jerked his thumb at Sirius.

**Papa was introducing Auntie to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Mr. Weasley was kind and polite. Mrs. Weasley… kinda went overboard. **

"Understatement of the year." Ron said. "Actually this isn't." Harry said with a thoughtful look.

**She stopped glaring at her and began to give Auntie all kinds of fussing.**

Several people sighed.

"**Oh, you poor dear", **

"Mam hated pity. She thought it was demeaning at the time." Aries clarified.

"**I don't think I could stand being away from my family for so long",**

"She couldn't either. She spent days crying and refusing to leave us." Harry added with a slight frown.

"**Have you been spending a lot of time with the boys?",**

"I don't think she'll ever get enough." Leo said with a conflicted emotion in his eyes.

"**Do you need any help with keeping a house?", "I have this excellent recipe-"**

"Mum was even asking about it in a couple of letters." Ron groaned. Septimus smiled at his grandson knowingly.

**It took the train getting ready to leave and Mr. Weasley to stop her.**

"I think Dad's the only one who can safely do it." Ron added.

**Leo gave Papa and Auntie a tight hug each. Papa always gives hugs, and Auntie gave Leo, Harry and Aries a kiss on the forehead each.**

Several people cooed.

**Leo had to get on the train, but he kept sticking out the window to wave goodbye to them, until he couldn't see them anymore.**

"Anymore and we'd have to peel half of you off the train." "Really Ron?" Sorry Nev."

**When Leo sat back down, he frowned. Harry kept looking at that old diary they found before the break. **

"I actually forgot about that bloody thing over the holiday." Neville admitted. Ron and Luna nodded.

**Aries was fiddling with a necklace he wore. "What is that anyway?" Leo asked, snapping Harry out of his trance.**

Aries looked down at the necklace and smiled.

"**A few trinkets from my parents." He said with a grin. **

He smiled, even if there was the faintest bits of sadness in the smile.

**Aries moved towards a simple looking ring. "See this crystal? It's amethyst. It's supposed to help keep my psyche clear of all those feelings that make me sick." "This is my Mam's wedding ring. Apparently Mam didn't see much point in wearing one on her finger so Da would wear hers and she wore his."**

"AWW!" Most of the girls cooed.

**Then Aries moved towards the silver medallion. "This has charms on both sides. They're Celtic protection charms that my Mam had engraved into the medallion." Aries said happily as he twirled the two trinkets around on the string.**

"Where'd you get the fang?" Barty asked. Aries held a finger to his lips in the 'quiet' motion.

**Leo noticed how Harry was all quiet. He still kept that old diary.**

Several of the guests from the future grimaced.

**Over the holiday they had tried everything. Revealers of all sorts did nothing. **

"Easy." The marauders huffed.

**They didn't risk using their wands, but Harry tried with an old wand they found in the house. **

"I think that might be Orion's." Leo said. "I think it is." Aries added.

**Nothing. **

"Dang it."

**Aries even tried using muggle tricks like lemon juice and heat.**

"How does that work?" James asked. "Muggle invisible ink can be made visible again with some acid, like in lemons to create a change in the makeup of the ink. Heat just makes it visible." Aries added. "You totally got that from a spy novel." Leo accused. "Guilty."

**Leo didn't see the point in keeping it. Obviously it was never used. **

Leo grumbled a bit.

**The door slid open to show Ron, the twins and Ginny. Ginny took one look at Harry and bolted.**

Well that was rude, Shizuka thought.

"**Rude." Leo huffed.**

Shizuka chuckled a bit.

**Ron sighed and plopped down next to Harry. "She still got a crush on Harry?" Aries asked as he kept twirling the ring around. "Unfortunately." George sighed.**

Harry grumbled something at Aries that caused him to flip Harry off.

**Then Luna, Neville, and Velvela joined them. "What's unfortunate?" Neville asked. "Ginny's still got that massive crush on Harry." Leo said. "Ah." They all intoned. **

"It was super obvious." Neville added. "It really was." Luna said.

"So what did you guys do during the rest of the holiday?" Leo asked. "Spent time looking for wrackspurts in mistletoes with Daddy." Luna answered. "Visited my parents at St. Mungo's." Neville said. Leo winced.

"**Oh, by the way guys I have some candy for the train ride." Neville said as he passed around candy canes. **

Many people laughed at Neville's choice of candy.

**Leo shifted his eyes and saw that George was a deep, deep crimson. Leo snapped his eyes out the window. Fred cackled as he and George left with a candy cane each. **

"I'm still curious about that." Neville said. Leo went pink as Harry explained that George tasted like candy cane when Leo kissed him.

"**Spent time with my family, and used my earnings to buy a new card game." Velvela said with a smirk. Leo went a darker shade of red and refused to make eye contact with anyone for a good half an hour. **

Several people snorted.

**After a while though, he can't stand giving the cold shoulder so he joined in the conversations and destroyed Velvela in a game of war. "I win!" "Best two out of three."**

Chuckles and giggles ensued.

**They kept taking turns playing as they neared the castle. Then Harry straightened in his seat. "I forgot to write a letter to Tonks." Harry said quickly. **

"She taught me a couple of neat spells." Harry explained.

"**You better get it started then." Leo said as he grabbed some fizzing whizzbees from Aries. **

"Sweet tooth much?" Sirius asked. Leo nodded. "Funny cause Pads isn't a huge fan of sweets most of the time." James said. "Really?" Harry asked. Sirius nodded and pointed at Shizuka. "She has a massive sweet tooth." Sirius pointed out.

Shizuka and Leo looked at each other and smiled.

**Harry had pulled out his quill and ink. But when he uncapped the ink, the train turned and ink spilled onto Harry's robes and the diary. **

"Ooh, bummer." Frank said.

**Harry opened the diary, but there was no ink. Not even a single drop.**

"Wait, what?" Remus asked as he bounced Teddy on his knee, trying to copy Ted and Nymphadora.

**Everyone stared in shock.**

"Obviously." Barty snorted.

**Harry moved his quill closer to the page. **

"How about no." Liliana said nervously.

"**I don't know Harry." Ron said uneasily. "It's just a book. What harm can it do?" Harry asked. **

Ron and Harry shared a look as they grumbled something incoherent to themselves.

"**You should have seen the books my dad's had to collect. There was one that burned your eyes out, and another one that you could never put down. There was also one that could-"**

"Arthur had to deal with that?" Septimus asked. Ron nodded. "He was in a worse mood with muggle baiting." Ron added.

"**Okay, I get it Ron." Harry said. **

"I don't think you did." "Really, mate?" "Yep."

"**But it's a diary from the school. Maybe it's just an old ink cleaning spell." Aries reasoned. **

"Wizards and logic rarely mix." Ted added. "True." Liliana seconded.

**Leo looked down at the book. "It looks harmless."**

"So are many other things that aren't." Moody growled.

"**Only one way to find out." Harry said. **

"Harry!" His mother and grandmother shouted in unison. Harry leered back and Ron jumped in his seat. "Mate, you are dead by the end of this." Ron whispered. "Shut up."

**Then Harry wrote down: **_**My name is Harry Potter.**_

"You should never give out your name! Names are very important things in magic!" Liliana scolded. James tried to comfort her and to calm her down. Harry was silently wondering if she'll ground him if this keeps up.

**They all waited for a brief moment before words began to form on the page. **_**Hello Harry Potter. My name is Tom Riddle.**_

"It's alive!" Sirius shouted. Several people snorted at his actions.

Meanwhile, Dorea, Charlus, Moody, McGonagall, Augusta, and Abarax looked contemplative. "That name sounds very familiar." Augusta said. "It does." Dorea added. "I take it were going to have to learn more about this Riddle fellow?" Charlus asked. Those from the future, save Teddy and Draco nodded.

**Everyone was shocked. "Oh my Godric." Neville whispered.**

"Nicely said Neville." Harry said with a grin.

**Leo tried his hardest not to blink in case he missed something else. **

"That actually hurt my eyes.

"**Ask him about the Chamber." Ron whispered. **

"Don't trust anything if you can't see where it's brain is." Septimus said warningly.

**Harry nodded before he scribbled down: **_**Do you know anything about the Chamber of Secrets?**_

"Can't you kids just leave things be?" Shizuka sighed. They looked amongst themselves and shook their questions at her question.

_**Yes. **_**Leo was hoping it was more than rumors and what Professor McGonagall told them before. **_**Can you tell me? **_**Harry scribbled quickly. **

Leo was grumbling something under his breath.

**They all watched eagerly. **_**No. **_

Some people sighed.

_**But I can show you. **_

And if most of the occupants weren't interested they groaned.

**A bright glow began to form along the seam of the diary and the small book flopped to the floor. Harry was gone.**

"What!?" James asked loudly. Draco was looking at Harry in shock. "You went inside that book?" Moody asked gruffly. Harry nodded sheepishly.

**Leo was doing his best not to panic. He was still hyperventilating but he wasn't yelling at the book like Ron and Velvela. **

"The rest of you were in a tizzy." Leo pointed out.

**Soon footsteps were beginning to come towards their compartment.**

"Bollocks."

**Leo silently cursed their luck as they began to pale.**

"What luck?" Most of them asked in unison.

"**We can't let anyone know that Harry is missing." Aries said lowly. "Then what do we do?" Ron asked.**

"Figure out a way to get Harry out of that damned diary?" James suggested slowly.

**Leo got a bright idea. **

"Please tell me this works." Sirius begged.

"**Aries do you have some paperclips?" Leo asked. Aries gave him half a dozen paperclips. **

"I had a lot of spare papers to keep together in my books." Aries replied to the questioning looks he got. "Yeah, and you hardly ever take those books out of your robes." Ron added with a smile.

"**Neville let me borrow your scarf."**

Most of the Longbottoms looked confused.

**Soon Leo made short work of twisting and bending the paperclips into a crude replica of Harry's glasses. When he put those on he messed up his hair and scratched a lightning bolt onto his forehead. **

"You disguised yourself as Potter?" Draco asked. Leo nodded. "It was easier when we were kids though." Leo admitted.

**When he heard a hand on the door he quickly wrapped himself in the red and gold scarf so that it covered most of his face. He leaned back into the seat and just as he closed his eyes the door rattled open.**

"Pads how come we never thought of that?" James asked. "Because my friends are undeniably awesome." Harry said causing James to splutter before laughing heartily.

"**Well, well, well. Looks like you lot still managed to come back." Draco said sharply. **

He looked down at his hands.

**It was quiet for a moment. "Where's Leo?" Draco asked.**

"I'm surprised you cared." Leo added. Draco didn't say anything.

**Leo did his best to keep still. "My cousin's whereabouts don't concern you Malfoy." Aries said coldly.**

"Well, technically you're all related." Barty pointed out. Some people grimaced, shrugged or smiled.

"**Oh, but it does since the two of you are family after all." Draco said viciously. **

"Blood isn't always everything though." Harry said with a strong look in his eye.

"**Just bugger off Malfoy." Ron bit out sharply. "Oh, so you think you can order me around Weasel?" "You better leave." Velvela growled. **

Draco Malfoy unconsciously rubbed his face at the mention of Velvela.

"**Why? I'm just concerned about why you lot were shouting Scarhead's name when my second cousin is missing." Draco drawled. **

"Really?" Leo asked. Draco nodded the tiniest bit at him.

"**Harry argued with Leo and Leo left to go talk to his older friends." Neville said.**

"And to think you stood up to the git who bullied you for me." Harry said. Neville went sheepish.

**Everyone was quiet. "And that bright light earlier?" Draco asked. **

"Rather inquisitive." Luna added.

**Leo heard shuffling. "You mean this MUGGLE flashlight?" Velvela asked. Draco didn't say anything and the door closed with a slam.**

"What did you do?" Aries asked with a raised brow. Draco narrowed his eyes. "None of your business Aries." He said coldly.

**Leo opened his eyes and took off his pathetic disguise.**

"Pathetic is right." Draco snorted. Leo shrugged.

"**Thanks Neville." Leo said as he handed back the scarf. **

"No problem." Neville said.

"**Mate, that was brilliant!" Ron said with a grin. "Malfoy couldn't tell the difference." **

Draco sneered at Ron, who blushed a bit. "He only associates with idiots Ron." Harry added.

**Aries frowned. "I don't know. I don't think he fully bought it." Aries muttered. **

"More like barely." Draco added.

"**He might be a jerk, but's he's a smart jerk." Velvela huffed. **

Draco looked questioningly at Aries. "What? It's true." Aries said.

"**Do you often make things?" Luna asked Leo. Leo nodded. "Want to help me with some projects of mine then?" Luna asked. Leo grinned. "Sure." He said. **

"Oh, what have you two made?" Xenophilius asked. "Some charms and trinkets along with big things like hats, outfits and a couple toys." Leo added. "Don't forget the decorations and the figurines." Luna added.

**About five minutes before they were going to be stopping the book glowed and Harry was back in his seat with a shocked look on his face. **

"So that's what I missed."

"**Harry, mate, you'll never believe it-" "It was Hagrid." Harry said lowly. "Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets."**

"WHAT!?" Almost everyone asked in shock. "That's why he got expelled from Hogwarts. He was accused of letting the monster out." McGonagall added bitterly.

**Leo paled. "No." Velvela breathed. "He wouldn't." Neville insisted.**

The friends from the future all shared a determined look.

"**What happened in the book?" Aries asked sternly.**

"Fear the Aries." Harry and Ron joked.

"**I was at Hogwarts, but it was fifty years ago. The Headmaster, Dippet, had called Tom in to tell him that he had to go back to the muggle orphanage he lived at, and that because of the Chamber, Hogwarts was going to be shut down."**

Those who were at Hogwarts at the time nodded. "It was really close to being shut down." Dorea added.

"**Then Tom walked and found Hagrid with some kind of monster, I think he named it Aragog. Tom tried to get rid of it, but the monster got away. That's all I saw." Harry said breathlessly.**

"Sounds like Aragorn son of Arathorn." Aries added. Leo snorted a 'book worm.' "Oh, from those books you lent over the summer!" Ron said. "He's a really awesome bloke."

Septimus smiled a bit at how cheerful his youngest grandson seemed.

**Leo frowned. "Maybe it was a mistake." He suggested. Ron nodded quickly. "Yeah, y'know Hagrid. He loves all kinds of dangerous beasts. He might have let it out on accident." Ron said. **

Those from the future (except Draco and Teddy) shared bitter, knowing looks.

"**Maybe we should ask him." Luna suggested.**

Xenophilius smiled proudly.

**They all looked at each other. "Yeah. Hagrid's our friend. We need to hear his side of the story." Leo agreed. "Alright. We sneak out after dinner and go to Hagrid's?" Harry asked. They all agreed.**

McGonagall huffed slightly, but she was glad that they were going to ask questions that should have been asked so many years ago.

**When they got off the train, Leo swore he felt like he was being watched.**

"You sure it's not just paranoia?" Lily asked. "Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they're not out to get you." Leo said with a deep frown that seemed to harden his dark grey eyes.

"Nicely put. That line of thinking is one of the few things keeping me alive today." Moody growled.

**He turned around, but there were too many people to tell who was looking where. Leo did his best to ignore it as he walked towards the carriages. **

"Never ignore you're instincts. It could easily get you killed." Moody growled.

**As he was about to get in, he was pulled back and his friends were already moving. **

Everyone was anxiously curious.

**Leo turned and saw that it was Ginny. **

"Ginny!?" Several people asked. "Mate, I thought you were being pranked by the twins." Ron added.

**She tugged him into a different carriage and soon it was moving.**

"She looked dead on her feet, how did she manage to drag you away?" Draco asked. Leo blushed a bit. "Leo's a total weenie." Harry added. "HEY!" Leo snapped.

**There was only one other person in the carriage. Leo couldn't tell who it was since they were facing away to look outside on the seat that Leo plopped onto.**

"I'm not liking this." Shizuka muttered. Sirius frowned deeply.

"**What's going on?" Leo asked with a glare. He might not have been a friend to Ginny, but he was sure this counted as kidnapping. **

"Technically it is." Moody growled.

"**That diary." Ginny said in a faintly raspy voice. "What about it?" Leo asked heatedly as he was trying to keep calm.**

"You actually tried?" Harry asked incredulously. "I do have some semblance of manners." Leo huffed. "Was this before or after you started shouting profanities at a group of old ladies?" Luna asked. "Hey, I was silenced, and they were asking for it." Leo defended. "I don't even want to know." Shizuka muttered to Sirius who barked out a laugh.

"**He should never have picked it up." Ginny said. **

Moody looked suspicious at those words.

"**Why? What Harry does is none of your business." Leo snapped.**

"Oh boy." Several people groaned.

**Ginny's face crumpled and looked as if she might cry.**

"Usually at this moment, men turn into complete hams." Liliana said. "Hams?" Alice asked strangely. "Hams." Liliana added. "She means really lame due to overacting." James translated. "You've been called a ham a lot I'm guessing." Harry asked. "Oh you have no idea." James added with a stupid grin.

**Leo stopped and immediately felt guilty. **

"I told you he's one of the biggest saps you'll ever meet." "Aries!"

"**Look, I'm sorry." Leo said awkwardly. "But what's the big deal about it? It's just an old diary."**

"Wait, how does she even know it's a diary?" Xenophilius asked airily. Everyone was shocked and puzzled. "Good point." Barty said.

**Ginny shook her head. "It's very important and-" She pitched forward and the other person caught her before setting her against the seat.**

Septimus and Ron looked very nervous.

**It was Tom.**

"HUH!?" was the overall consensus of the room.

"**Tom?" Leo asked. Tom smiled a tiny bit. "It's nice to see you again Leo." Tom said smoothly.**

"It's rather odd how Tom seems to hang around Ginny." Xenophilius said, which made Ron grumble.

**Leo turned his attention back to Ginny. He noticed how paler she was than the last time he saw her. **

Everyone looked concerned.

"**Is she going to be okay?" Leo asked. Tom glanced down at her briefly. "I think it will end soon." Tom said. Leo nodded, feeling uncomfortable. **

"He could have worded that a bit better." Shizuka mumbled in concern.

"**Tom." Leo said. Tom hummed a bit. "My friends and I we found a diary from fifty years ago. The owner's name is Tom too." Leo said. **

"This is why you're a Puff." Aries deadpanned.

**Tom blinked a bit. "I'm not too surprised. Tom is a very common name in the muggle world." **

"It really is actually now that I think about it." Ted added. Lily nodded.

**Leo tilted his head a bit. "So you're muggleborn then?" Leo asked. Tom shook his head. "Half-blood. Muggle father, magical mother." He replied tonelessly. Leo nodded.**

Some of the future guests grumbled a bit amongst themselves.

"**I'm guessing you're a pureblood. All members of the Black family are." Tom said. **

"Nope. One of the last two for my generation." Leo pointed out.

"**I am, but I have a second cousin who's a half-blood, and a cousin who is mixed." Leo replied awkwardly.**

"Now you proudly say you're half-human." Leo smirked. Aries smirked back.

**Tom looked at him curiously for a brief moment.**

"It was getting really intense in the carriage." Leo added.

"**Why aren't you riding with your friends?" Leo asked. Tom kept staring at Leo with an expression he couldn't read. "I don't have any friends." Tom said. **

"Isn't he in Slytherin?" Lily asked. Dorea frowned. "It's possible to have friends within Slytherin regardless of blood." She said causing Andromeda to nod.

"**Everyone has friends." Leo said.**

"I take back my previous statement." Leo said.

"**Most people in my house don't care for non-purebloods like me." Tom replied.**

Dorea and Andromeda huffed.

**Leo looked at his robe and saw the Slytherin crest on it. Leo winced. How many Slytherins were like Draco?**

"Sorry." Leo mumbled. Draco said nothing.

"**Do you want to be friends?" Leo asked. **

Leo slammed his hand into his forehead. "You seriously asked him that?" Neville asked in shock. Harry was looking at him in unadulterated shock, as Ron and Luna stared at him strangely. Aries was muttering things under his breathe that were most likely Celtic insults.

**Tom looked at him strangely.**

"I'm not liking this." Shizuka said loudly.

**Tom leaned closer and Leo felt himself being cornered into the side of the carriage.**

"I'M not liking this." Sirius said worriedly.

"**It's not smart to blindly befriend others." Tom breathed. **

"And you are starting to creep me out." Frank added.

**He was so close that Leo felt his breathe brush against his face.**

"Back away from my godson!" Remus said loudly as Teddy gave a chirpy growl.

"**You are far too trusting, Leo." Tom said lowly **

"And you're far too close to my son." Sirius said heatedly.

**Leo was trying to lean away, only to misplace his hand and fall back onto the seat with a yelp. **

"Not my best moment." Leo said sheepishly.

**Tom was looking down at him with an unfamiliar look in his dark eyes. **

"Where's an adult?" Ron asked with a slightly green tint to his freckled face.

"**There are people who wouldn't think twice about taking advantage of you." Tom said as he lowered himself ever so slightly towards Leo. **

"Others in general or YOU?" Shizuka asked in concern. "UGH!" Sirius groaned as Leo shouted "MAMA!"

**The carriage stopped with a jerk that woke Ginny up.**

Septimus was concerned that she blacked out for most of the trip back without getting medical attention.

**Leo twisted and fell to the floor. He opened the door quickly and ran up towards the front steps of the castle. **

"Thank you!" Liliana sighed in relief. "You didn't get lost?" Ted asked. "I just followed the crowd." Leo admitted.

**He got inside and found himself being pulled by the back of his robes again.**

"AGAIN!?" Sirius groaned. "I told you this was a bad year to be Leo." Harry said casually.

**It was Fred. **

Everyone not from the future sighed in relief.

"**A little birdie told us you got snatched by our sister." George said. "The little birdie also told us to go and find you." Fred added. "In exchange for what?" Leo asked as he had a pretty good felling who the 'little birdie' was.**

"Velvela." All the friends from the future choired.

"**Oh, the usual." George said. "Prank tests." "A favor" "Or two." Leo sighed. "I get it, I get it. Which way to the hall?" **

James chuckled. "I love how this is all routine for you." Leo grinned and shrugged.

**He was brought into the hall, as he was tossed over Fred's shoulder.**

Leo huffed in mock offence.

**When they entered the Great Hall, there were familiar voices shouting "Now Kiss!"**

"Velvela." Luna pointed out. Sirius groaned and Leo blushed as he hid his face with his shirt.

"**Not again!"**

"Me." Ron added.

"**Don't!"**

Harry raised his hand.

"**No way!"**

Aries and Neville raised their hands.

"**Do it!" **

"Who said that?" Aries asked. "I think it was Seamus." Harry said with a thoughtful look.

**from the direction of Gryffindor table.**

"Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were eagerly watching." Luna pointed out. "What about Slytherin?" Liliana asked Draco. Draco was surprised that she was talking to him. "I think some were interested." Draco said.

**Leo put his hands on his face, completely mortified. **

"Mate you went Weasley red." Neville pointed out. "Hey!" Ron huffed as Septimus smiled nervously.

**He made the mistake of moving his hands.**

Sirius rubbed a hand down his face.

**George's freckled face was suddenly in his, and there was a feeling of another set of lips against Leo's. **

"And George gets kiss number two." Aries snickered as Leo went scarlet. "This time around can you only make me worry about this kinds of stuff when you enter third year and up?" Sirius asked. "No promises." Harry said.

**George pulled back quickly from Leo as they both held their mouths with scarlet faces.**

"A matching set." Luna said airily.

**Leo saw a hysterical Lee Jordan not too far from George.**

"The twins corrupted him." Leo said with red cheeks.

**George started to chase after him as Fred walked over to the table and set Leo down. **

"Could have roasted an egg on your face." Harry sang cheekily. Leo gave him a rude hand gesture.

**Leo slid under the table in embarrassment. He heard several people throughout the hall groan, as many of the girls… squealed. He heard some of the older girls talking about how "cute" it was. **

"It really was cute." Luna added. "Luna, please. That's my brother." Ron begged. "Some of the guys looked interested as well." Harry pointed out. "Leave Leo alone!" Leo shouted as he flailed his arms childishly.

**Leo didn't show his face until half way through dinner when his stomach rumbled. He sat up and ate. **

"Food. The ultimate driving force of these two." Neville joked as he pointed to Ron and Leo.

**It was awkward since Ron and Leo couldn't look each other in the eye. **

"How awkward was that?" Remus asked. Sirius snickered a little bit. "It wasn't funny Sirius. Imagine you were in my place and George was Regulus and Leo was James." Ron said. Sirius stopped laughing, and James pulled a face.

Remus leaned over to James. "That would easily give Padfoot a mental breakdown." Remus whispered. James may or may not have smirked at the possibility of pranking his friend badly if he should cross him.

**That's when Fred came over. **

"Oh no…" Sirius groaned.

"**Hey Leo." He greeted. "What was with Lee?" Leo asked. Fred snickered a bit.**

"He was nervous." Aries pointed out.

"**Well you see, there's this huge betting pool now concerning you and my siblings." Fred said. Leo dropped his fork and Ron coughed badly. **

"Nearly choked." Ron huffed good naturedly.

"**What pool?" Velvela asked. "There's this bet on who Leo kisses, and what not." Fred said. **

"UGH." Sirius groaned as his forehead met the table.

**Leo head desked then as Ron groaned.**

"Hey." Harry pointed out as he gestured at Ron and Harry. "Shut up. You took a vow of silence on the subject." Leo said quickly. "They'll find out soon anyway." Harry pointed out. "Bollocks." Ron cursed.

"**Are you in on it?" Harry asked.**

Leo sent this look at Harry that said 'Really? Really, man?'

**Why did Harry have to ask? They were almost in on every bet in school to try and earn as much money as possible for them and their family. It definitely wasn't their parents buying them their pranking equipment. **

Septimus frowned a bit.

**Leo felt his head being lifted and felt another set of lips. **

"HIM TOO!?" Sirius shouted. Ron went green as Leo went red.

**Fred let him go and Leo may or may not have screamed when he saw the twin pocket some money. **

"I am not a whore!" Leo shouted indignantly. That got lots of laughter going. "No, but you do swing both ways." Harry pointed out. "Huh? You too?" Shizuka asked. Leo nodded a bit uncomfortable.

"Wait, who else is bi?" Aries asked. "Bi?" James asked. "Bisexual. Equal attraction to both genders." Aries clarified. Sirius raised a hand along with James. "Really?" Harry asked. "I'm more curious if anything." James said.

Shizuka and Liliana shared blushed looks of surprise and enjoyment. _Maybe Liliana would like those novels I read. _Shizuka thought.

**{Sorry it took me so long to update! I had a lot on my plate to finish, and it might take me a while to update again (sorry!). However I would like to add something about the ending. If Shizuka and Liliana were real, and living in modern times they'd be yaoi/boyslove fans. Just putting that out there. So if there are any issues with that here's your warning since I'm going to be adding more of those types of stuff in the story. Please feel free to comment, and leave any suggestions. Thank you for reading my story so far!—CM}**


	15. Chapter 15

Frank took the book and began to read.

**Chapter 15. The Spider **

Ron shuddered.

**Harry was trying to be careful during his next few weeks back. He truly was after finding out about his ability to create barriers.**

"Since when were you cautious?" Draco asked. Harry didn't dignify that with an answer.

**He tried not to let anything set him off even if Snape was a grease stain on the face of the earth, Lockhart was a moron, and he couldn't trust Dumbledore. **

"Even the most patient of beings get shorter tempers when dealing with that." Aries snarked.

**Harry walked down towards breakfast. He noticed how Ron was inhaling food quicker than he remembered Dudley could, and Neville was trying to talk to him. **

The two shared a grin.

"**Morning." He greeted. **

"Eloquent as ever." Lucius muttered.

"**Hey, Harry." Neville said nervously. "Hm?" Neville shifted his eyes a bit across the Hall. **

Moody nodded at the precaution.

"**The attacks, why hasn't anyone done anything?" Neville asked. **

"Excellent point." Augusta said.

**Harry looked at him in surprise. "No idea." Harry muttered. **

"That's why you leave the thinking to me huh?" Aries joked.

**Neville had a point. Nothing happened. No one wrote owls, or got the Aurors involved. Why? **

"Dumbledore." Many hissed coldly.

**Harry was pulled out of his thoughts by Ron who stopped eating for a moment. "Did you notice how they stopped watching the dorms the day after we got back?" Ron asked. **

"What?" McGonagall asked.

**Harry nodded. This wasn't making any sense. He kept mulling over this as he went to his classes. **

"Good luck with that." James saluted.

**He tried to ask Aries, but when Harry talked to him, he looked like he was going to keel over. **

"It wasn't that bad." Aries insisted. "No, really it was." Luna pointed out. "Even some Slytherins you were going to go belly up and petrify." Draco pointed out.

"**It's nothing." Aries said unsteadily. "Just practicing my stuff, like Mam said to." Aries muttered.**

"Practicing what?" Arcturus asked. Aries didn't say anything and rubbed his injured arm a bit.

**Harry nodded a bit. "Just be careful." Harry said. "I'll be fine, I've done this before." Aries returned as he walked towards his next lesson on swaying legs.**

"You didn't go to the Hospital wing?" Sirius asked. Aries shook his head causing the Animagus to groan.

**Harry wandered into Defense and settled for glaring at Lockhart as he muttered useless parts of his books. **

Harry and Ron shared annoyed looks.

**Harry kept glaring at the pompous idiot that de-boned him. **

James glared at the book thanks to the reminder.

"**Wanna get him to use you're wand?" Harry whispered at Ron. "No." Ron mouthed as he hid the broken and badly tapped wand from sight. Harry knew that Ron's grades were dropping because of the stupid thing, but Ron was scared of angering Mrs. Weasley again, so Harry dropped it. **

Septimus frowned. "Would she really get made over that?" He asked his youngest grandson. "Who knows? A lot of things set her off." Ron answered as he averted his blue eyes.

"**Y'know, this castle has been far too gloomy lately." Lockhart said loudly.**

"Yeah, monsters on the loose tend to do that." Ron muttered.

"**I have just the pick-me-up." Lockhart said with a tap on his nose.**

"UGH!"

**When Lockhart was trying to get to his desk to get his copy of Magical Me to read to the class, Harry glared fiercely at the desk. To his surprise, Lockhart wasn't able to even touch the wooden desk.**

James laughed loudly and Charlus smiled a bit. "Don't worry, this time around we'll teach you like we should have." Charlus promised. Harry looked at the two and smiled warmly.

**Lockhart chuckled anxiously, and tried again only to get shoved back into an empty desk. **

"I hope it hurt!"Remus said with a wolfish smirk. "Moony!" James said in fake surprise. "What?" The werewolf asked as he hugged Teddy. "I never thought you had it in you." Sirius added. "That's a lie and you know it Pads." The two animagi accepted it with gracious nods.

"**Well, obviously the Heir knows that I am far more than a match for him, and he decided to keep me away from my supplies." Lockhart boasted.**

"What, your make up?" Lucius sneered.

**Harry rolled his eyes and Ron snorted. **

So did many other listeners.

**Lockhart seemed to hear it. **

"Bollocks."

"**Harry, care to garner a look at it?" Lockhart called loudly. **

James felt his eye twitch in annoyance.

**Harry grumbled and dragged his feet towards the desk. "See, Harry dark magic is obviously at work here." Lockhart said dramatically. **

"Even if it were, which it's not, why are you letting a twelve year old boy near it?" Dorea asked with narrowed eyes. "I smell a fraud." James said as he mimicked his mother's actions.

**Harry snorted, and opened the desk drawer to put Lockhart's hair curlers on top of the desk. **

Several people laughed loudly. Ron and Harry held nothing back and laughed the loudest.

**Several students tried to hold their laughter back as Lockhart was baffled. "Ah, yes Harry. Good work of retrieving a lost item after I removed the curse." Lockhart boasted with a chuckle.**

"_Zitto."_ Liliana hissed in annoyance.

**Harry grimaced as he walked back. He and Ron shared an exasperated look as they droned out most of the lesson. **

"We just talked." Ron added.

**Harry was sure his lessons were making him dumber instead.**

"Same." All of those who had Lockhart had as a Professor agreed.

**When Valentine's day came around Harry felt his tolerance for Lockhart shrink. The entire Great Hall was covered in pink roses, and heart shaped confetti poured down in buckets. **

McGonagall rubbed the temples of her head as if she had a headache as everyone pulled a face.

**Harry tried to dust the offensive decorations off of his food.**

"Save the food!" Sirius and Leo chorused.

**Ron was in an even fowler mood; he was wearing the same disgusted and annoyed face as the Professors. The only ones who didn't seem to mind were Lockhart and Dumbledore. **

"Of course." Several people moaned.

**When Lockhart stood to talk and show off his gaudy pink robes that hurt his eyes, Harry turned towards his friends.**

"I think it made your eyes worse." Neville joked. Harry snorted.

**Velvela came by to their table. "I need to go home, my Grandma's sick." She explained. Aries uneasily hugged her and wished her good luck. When Harry did the same, he saw Aries gulp down a bunch of water to help settle his stomach. **

Aries shot Harry a stern look that Harry was unaffected by.

**Harry shifted his eyes. "Let's do it tonight." Harry said. "What?" Ron asked with a stuffed mouth. "Go to Hagrid's." Harry clarified. "Harry we haven't been able to do that in well over a month. Why now?" Aries asked.**

"Yes, why?" Liliana asked as she kept her eyes glued towards her son.

**Harry frowned a bit. "I can't shake this feeling that something bad is going to happen real soon." Harry muttered.**

"Something always happens." The Hogwarts students of the future groaned.

**Aries frowned deeper. "Alright." Ron said. "Sorry, I don't think I can make it." Aries murmured. "Me neither." Neville said. "Snape gave me detention."**

"I had to clean cauldrons after ruining his robe." Neville clarified. Alice and Frank had angry expressions, but Augusta was the scariest.

"**What about you Luna?" Harry asked. Luna looked dreamily up at the confetti. "I think Aries would like some company." She said. **

Luna hummed a bit.

"**Okay. When dinner's done, Ron and I will sneak down towards Hagrid's." Harry said lowly. **

Dorea grimaced.

"**Wait a minute." Aries muttered. "Where's Leo?" Harry felt guilty for forgetting about him. **

"My feelings." Leo said in a sad voice as he held a hand over his heart. "What feelings?" Aries asked, causing Leo to snort.

"**I didn't see him come in." Neville added. Harry frowned. "I'll look for him later." Aries muttered. "Okay." Harry said.**

They all began to mutter about something.

**They went about the rest of the day doing their usual lessons, or at least they tried to. Lockhart had gotten a bunch of Golden winged, harp carrying dwarves to deliver Valentines. **

"Oh dear lord." McGonagall groaned into her hands.

**Harry felt mortified when one compared him to a pickled toad and a blackboard.**

Several people snorted and chuckled.

**He noticed haw sad Ginny looked when everyone laughed, and Harry guessed it was her Valentine.**

"Uhm… awkward." Sirius said nervously.

**Ron was uncomfortable about it. "Mate this is weird for me." He said as they wandered down to Herbology. "I know, but it's weird for me too." Harry said.**

"Still is." They both said.

**As they pruned a fluxweed, Harry noticed something out of the corner of his eye. **

That peaked everyone's curiosity.

"**Ron, look." Harry whispered and jerked his head. There was a trail of spiders leaving the Greenhouse in a single line. **

"Did you have to show me that?" Ron asked as he shuddered at the memory.

"**Do you think the Chamber has something to do with the spiders?" Harry whispered. Ron didn't say anything and tried to ignore the spiders as they continued their lesson.**

"Maybe. Weird things keep happening." Charlus added.

**After dinner the two of them went out of the portrait hole ignoring the Pink Lady's questions and ran down towards the Great Hall. **

"She always asks." James said.

**They waited briefly to make sure no one was there and ran on.**

The marauders and Moody nodded.

**They got outside and sprinted down towards Hagrid's hut. Ron knocked furiously on the door. Hagrid opened the door and was shocked to see them there.**

"Obviously." McGonagall said sternly.

"**Come in, quick!" Hagrid whispered loudly. They walked in and tried to catch their breaths. Harry sat down and Fang rested his large slobbery head on his lap. **

"UGH."

**Hagrid was grim faced when he nodded. "Yeah, all muggle-borns petrified. This is turnin' int' a nightmare." Hagrid said. **

"A very bad nightmare." Lily said with a shudder. Those from the future shrugged.

"**Speakin' o' you should be here." Hagrid said. "We know Hagrid. But we're worried." Harry said.**

"Hagrid is a very strong bloke." James added.

"**Thanks fer carin', but this 's no' my firs' time dealin' with th' Chamber." Hagrid said grimly. "Hagrid you were there when it opened all those years ago?" Ron asked. "O' Course. Me third year in Gryffindor." Hagrid replied, but that looked like that was all he wanted to say. **

"Don't blame him." Many said lowly.

**When Harry opened his mouth to say something there was a knock on the door. They went rigid. **

Everyone paled.

"**Hide!" Hagrid mouthed at them. Harry pulled out his dad's invisibility cloak as Hagrid yelled "Jus' a minute!" **

"You're cutting it close." Sirius said nervously.

**Fang began to bark as Hagrid opened the door. In came in Professor Dumbledore with a purple floral robe that made his beard stand out.**

The description made several people grimace.

**After Dumbledore came in a short and round man wearing a pinstrip suit, a scarlet tie, a black robe and nervously holding a lime green bowler in his hands. "Minister Fudge." Ron breathed. **

Everyone else (except Teddy and Nymphadora) sneered and grumbled, especially Sirius.

**Harry clamped his hand over Ron's mouth to keep him quiet. Hagrid looked tired all of a sudden and he sat down in a large wooden chair. **

"This can't be good." Charlus muttered to himself.

"**Good evening Hagrid." Dumbledore greeted softly. "Bad business, Hagrid." Minister Fudge said in clipped tones. **

Moody grimaced. He did not like the tone of his future minister.

"**Six students have been petrified. This is has gone too far, the ministry has got to get involved. The Board of Governors has gotten in touch again-" Harry narrowed his eyes at the man. He let Sirius rot in Azkaban for ten years.**

Sirius whimpered slightly. Charlus had a steeled look in his eyes that promised pain for Fudge.

"**Now wai' jus' a minute!" Hagrid bellowed. "I dinna do anythin', Professor-" Dumbledore looked at the minister. "I can assure you Cornelius that Hagrid has my full confidence." Dumbledore said softly. **

"What about alibi's and proof?" Moody countered.

**Fudge looked dubious. "Yes. And I recall your ravings of having hired a man possessed by You-Know-Who." Fudge dismissed harshly. **

"Who knew Fudge had something resembling a spine?" Abarax scoffed.

"**Look I'm sorry Dumbledore, but we have to take him. The Ministry has to be seen doing something-"**

"SEEN!?" The adults bellowed.

"**Take me? Take me where?" Hagrid asked as he paled and began to sweat. "Not Azkaban prison!" Hagrid shouted.**

Harry saw Sirius stiffen.

"**I heard from Sirius wha' 's like, yeh can't take me there!" Hagrid pleaded. **

"And you won't either." James promised his friend.

"**I'm sorry Hagrid, but it's only temporary. It's only until we get this case closed." Fudge said. Hagrid looked like he didn't believe him. **

Harry didn't blame him, especially after what Sirius went through.

**That's when someone else came into the hut. It was Mr. Malfoy dressed all in sleek black robes with his long hair tied back. **

Everyone looked confused, especially Lucius.

"**Wha' ere yeh doin' here?" Hagrid asked. "Get outta my house!"**

"I don't think I want to." Lucius said.

**Mr. Malfoy stepped over towards Fudge. "Please dear man, as if I wanted to be inside this- d'you call this a house?" Mr. Malfoy asked in a sneer as his grey eyes roamed over Hagrid's home. Fang growled slightly from his corner. **

Some people grumbled, but otherwise did nothing against Lucius.

"**The Board of Governors has just convened and they present you with this." Mr. Malfoy drawled as he handed Dumbledore a bound scroll. "In there you'll find everything in order for your suspension." Mr. Malfoy said with a smirk. **

"Bad timing." Several people groaned.

"**I know yer on the Board!" Hagrid bellowed at Mr. Malfoy. "What'd you black mail 'em wit'!?" **

Lucius narrowed his eyes.

"**Calm yourself Hagrid." Dumbledore said softly. Fudge began to sweat. **

"An angry Hagrid is terrifying." Every Gryffindor chorused.

"**Yeh can't take Professor Dumbledore away." Hagrid said. "They'll be killin's next!" Hagrid protested. "Then I believe the staff should focus on stopping these 'killin's' as you put it." Mr. Malfoy drawled.**

"You do raise an excellent point." McGonagall said.

"**Now, Lucius, to take Dumbledore away now-" Fudge said nervously. "I'm sorry Minister but this was not decided by me. It was done by the Board of Governors at the requests of many concerned parents, such as myself." Mr. Malfoy replied smoothly.**

"You play the minister like a fiddle." Sirius said. Lucius couldn't help but smirk.

**Dumbledore was looking through the scroll as they talked. "Then I must leave." Dumbledore said softly. "Professor!" Hagrid said.**

"Maybe we can go with your plan, Lucius." Abarax said. Lucius nodded uncomfortably.

"**If the Board of Governors wishes for my absence, then I must oblige." Dumbledore said with a slight bow of his head. "However Lucius, I believe you'll find that to those truly loyal, it would be as if I never left." Dumbledore said softly as he stepped out of Hagrid's hut.**

"Who?" Several people demanded.

**Lucius Malfoy followed with a sneer that showed how grateful he was to be out of Hagrid's home.**

No one said anything.

**Hagrid stood there nervously. "Follow the spiders, 's the on'y way t' find th' truth nowadays, that's all I have t' say." Hagrid said as he uneasily stomped out of the hut, with Fudge following behind him. **

"Hagrid." Many people said sadly.

"**An' make sure someone looks after me dog!" Hagrid shouted before the door closed.**

Sirius gave a sad, broken laugh.

**The minute the door closed Harry and tossed the cloak to the floor in a heated rage. **

"THAT was scary." Ron added.

"**They can't just take Hagrid." Harry murmured. Ron patted him on the back. "S alright. They can't keep him there for long after Sirius' case." Ron pointed out.**

"Yeah, 'cause it will look bad." Aries sneered.

"**Look." Harry said as he pointed towards a wall. There was a thin line of spiders walking in a single line out of the window and into the forest. "Follow the spiders." Harry repeated. **

Several people looked disturbed.

**Ron paled and whimpered. "C'mon!" Harry said quietly as he grabbed Fang's leash. He grabbed some of Hagrid's fudge since it stuck you mouth together like glue and Fang kept howling.**

"No howling can bring help." Sirius said slowly.

"**Follow the spiders, why can't it be follow the butterflies." Ron whimpered.**

"Too bad." Harry muttered.

**Harry walked next to Ron and ushered him along when he stopped in front of medium sized spiders.**

Ron shuddered.

"**What on earth is making the spiders do this?" Harry asked aloud. "Something bad. Very bad." Ron said nervously as he almost tripped on a tree root.**

"Of course it is." Septimus groaned.

"**Wait, what's that?" Harry asked when he stood still. **

Several listeners were anxious.

**There was a rustling sound that grew louder as it got closer to them. They pulled their wands out. The rustling of dead leaves and the crackling of twigs in the forest was getting louder as they could see their breaths mist in the moonlight.**

Several people grew nervous and worried.

"**Harry, it's the car!" Ron cheered. Sure enough a battered Ford Anglia drove towards them.**

Almost everyone sighed in relief.

"**The magic of the forest must have made it wild." Ron murmured in fascination. "C'mon. We need to keep going." Harry said.**

"You could turn back." Liliana said with a small shred of hope.

**They kept following the spiders, and suddenly Ron began to whimper. "Harry." Ron said in a fear laden voice. "What?" Harry asked. Ron pointed and Harry felt his blood curdle. It was a spider. A spider larger than the car. **

"AIIEEE!"

**They ran. They kept running until they reached a clearing that was covered in spider webs. **

"Please for the love of magic, tell me that's not the nest." James begged. He got no answer.

**Harry heard a loud clicking echo around him. "Aragog. Aragog." Harry, Ron and Fang were surrounded by spiders, ranging from the size of a small poodle to the size of a large car. **

"Acromantula." Moody growled.

**That's when, from a dark cave formed by an ancient tree came out the largest spider. It was the size of a school bus. As it crept forward Harry noticed how its eyes were milky white. It's blind. **

Everyone was pale and disturbed.

"**Hagrid?" The spider clicked. "Strangers." Another spider up in the trees clicked. "Then kill them I have no time for strangers." The large blind spider clicked as it began to crawl back.**

"NO!"

"**We're friends of Hagrid's. He sent us here." Harry said loudly, since Ron was terrified. "Why?" The spider asked, with what Harry could only guess was concern. "He's in trouble. They locked him away." Harry said. **

"Talking giant man eating spiders." Ron muttered under his breath. Luna patted his knee and gave him a soft smile that he weakly returned.

**The spider clicked angrily. Ron whimpered. "Where?" The spider demanded. "An island far from here where he will lose every bit of happiness he has." Harry said bitterly. The spiders clicked an angry chorus. **

"The spiders like Hagrid." Sirius said in disbelief.

"**They think Hagrid opened the Chamber again." Harry said. "Again!?" The spider was angry. "Hagrid didn't open the Chamber all those years ago." The spider said. Harry remembered something then. **

"That memory!" Alice crowed.

"**Your name is Aragog." Harry said. "Yes." Aragog clicked. "You're not the monster from the Chamber?" Harry asked. "I? No." Aragog said as he moved slightly forward. "The monster was born in the castle. I was born in the pocket of a traveler. Hagrid found me, and let me live inside a box with him in the castle." Aragog said. **

"Hagrid needs to redefine what makes a good pet." Remus murmured.

"**So if it wasn't you, what is the monster?" Harry asked. "We do not speak its name." Aragog clicked hastily. "All spiders fear it. When I felt it's presence I begged Hagrid to let me go, but he never understood the danger."**

"THAT is scared of the monster!?" Barty asked in disbelief.

**Harry swallowed the lump in his throat. "So you didn't kill that girl?" Harry asked. "No. I was accused of it. Hagrid was forced to stop learning, but he has done so much for me. He found me my mate, and look at how large our family's grown." Aragog said with what could only be pride. **

"Hagrid!" McGonagall yelled.

"**Well thank you, but we need to get going." Harry said quickly when Ron showed him that the spiders were coming down from the trees. "Go?" Aragog clicked. "I promised not to harm Hagrid, but my children are hungry for flesh. Goodbye friends of Hagrid." **

If it weren't for the fact that Harry and Ron were in the Room, their families would be driven to an early grave.

**There was a loud blaring honk as the car drove in front of the spiders. Harry opened the door and they all climbed inside the car. **

"Hurrah!" James cheered.

**Spiders began to hurdle themselves at the car, cracking at the already broken windshields.**

"Hurroo." Remus groaned.

**Harry opened the door slightly. "Arana eximae!" He shouted and a light hit the spider.**

"Wait a—that was the first time you used that spell!" Aries accused. Harry nodded shocking many.

**When the door closed again the car drove off towards the castle. When they got to the edge of the forest they ran out.**

Several people sighed in relief.

**Ron leaned against an old tree as he emptied his stomach. "Follow the spiders!? If Hagrid gets out of Azkaban, I'm gonna kill him!" Ron bellowed as he stomped back towards the hut.**

"That was incredibly dangerous. Hagrid should know better!" McGonagall said furiously. Who wouldn't be knowing there was an Acromantula colony near a school full of children?

"**Good load of nothing that, except almost ending up spider food!" Harry felt a light bulb go off. "No we did learn something." Harry said. "What?" "Hagrid never opened the Chamber. He's innocent." **

"If only there was an adult to back you two up." Ted added.

**Ron grumbled a bit before looking at Harry in shock. "Harry, Fudge said there were six attacks." Ron said.**

"Wait there were more?" Several asked in shock.

**Harry was puzzled too. "Colin was the first. Then there was that Ravenclaw, and Dean." Harry ticked off. "So who're the other three?" Ron asked in shock. **

Everyone was anxious and nervous.


	16. Chapter 16

"I'll read next." Luna said airily as she took the book and flipped to the next chapter.

**Chapter 16. Revelations**

Several confused looks were sent in the direction of the future telling book.

**The next morning, everything was gloomy.**

"No shit." Ron snorted.

**Harry could feel the tension in the air. He sighed. He was really looking forward to coming back here.**

"Hogwarts is like a second home huh?" James asked. Harry smiled a bit, but stayed silent.

**As much as he enjoyed being with Saorise and Sirius, he felt different at Hogwarts. A bit…lighter, until the recent events.**

"I think we all know that feeling." Leo said.

**When he went down to breakfast he saw Aries propping himself against a stone wall. **

Aries grimaced.

"**What's wrong?" Neville asked. **

"That's a list that no one wants to hear." Aries deadpanned.

"**Ugh… Fear." Aries muttered. "How bad is it?" Harry wondered. "It smells like vinegar, sweat and something that's a day old." Aries mumbled as he pulled his robe over his nose.**

"ICK!"

"**So that's what fear smells like." Ron said. "Yeah, plus, some unfortunate bugger feels pretty wretche-" Aries stopped to gag loudly. **

"Did you throw up?" Andromeda asked. "Yeah." Aries admitted causing her to fret.

"**Why don't you wear that ring?" Harry asked. **

Luna frowned a tiny bit.

"**Luna said she was getting headaches a couple weeks ago, so I let her borrow it since it actually worked." Aries said. **

"Maybe you should have kept it Ree." Neville said timidly. Aries didn't reply and just straightened up a bit.

"**I can't eat, I'm gonna head towards the Hospital wing." Aries muttered before stomping away.**

Everyone grimaced a bit. He'd have to see the poor petrified students.

"**Excuse me." A voice piped from behind them. It was Theodore Nott, a tall weedy Slytherin in their year.**

"Nott has a son?" Lucius asked. Draco nodded. "He's not a bad bloke to know. He's certainly better company than his father." Lucius nodded at his son's words.

"**Can I help you?" Harry asked politely. "Yeah, shouldn't you be helping him?" The boy asked.**

"Like he'd let us you stubborn-" Ron was cut off by Aries' unamused look.

"**Aries can take care of himself fine." Ron said dismissively. The boy narrowed his eyes at Harry. "Seems rather mean for the golden Boy Who Lived to do." Harry frowned deeply at the title. **

Harry grimaced viciously at the title. He hated, hated, HATED it.

"**Why do you even care?" Ron asked. "Just curious of the big hero here." The boy said before turning away.**

"I wasn't a hero." Harry mumbled to himself.

"**Just ignore him." Ron muttered with narrowed eyes. "Sorry guys, but I just remembered that Gran was mailing me something today." Neville said. **

Neville gave a sheepish grin.

"**No problem, Neville." Harry said. "Yeah, no worries." Ron added. **

"What did you get?" Alice asked her son. "She mailed me a tin of candies." Neville said with a grin that melted the harsh Longbottom matriarch's heart.

**When Harry and Ron went down for breakfast, they were stopped by Professor McGonagall.**

The marauders looked excitedly at the Transfiguration professor.

**Harry knew something wasn't right because McGonagall had a sad look in her eyes.**

Everyone frowned. Something wasn't right.

"**Mr. Potter—I believe you should come with me. You too, Mr. Weasley." She said. **

"What's goin' on?" Sirius asked.

**Harry and Ron shared a puzzled look before following the Scottish professor. As she led them down further in to the castle, Harry began to worry. Did she notice that they went out into the forest? We're they getting detention again? Or were they going to be expelled? Were they—**

"You, my son, are a worry wart." Liliana said. Harry blushed a bit. "Still is." Neville added.

**Harry was pulled out of his thoughts by shouting. Harry looked and saw that they were at the doors of the hospital wing. "SAFEST PLACE ON EARTH MY ARSE!" A familiar voice bellowed in an unbridled fury. Harry paled. That sounded like Sirius.**

"What happened?" Sirius asked anxiously.

"**Sirius, calm down." That soft Irish voice sounded just like Saorise.**

Ron, Aries and Harry looked down at their laps.

"**This is the second time I failed to take care of him, how the bloody fucking hell am I supposed to be calm!?" What was Sirius talking about? **

Arcturus had an inkling, but he hoped he was wrong.

"**What do you mean fail?" Saorise asked.**

"Yeah, failed what?" Remus asked curiously as Teddy slumped against his chest tiredly.

"**When Voldemort hunted my friends down to get Harry, that's what I'm referring to!"**

Everything went still. "WHAT!?" Liliana and James asked in unison. Harry looked down.

**Harry felt his insides go frigid. Voldemort was after him? Why?**

Liliana looked livid and James looked positively looked vicious.

**Why did no one, Sirius even, hide that from him?**

Sirius winced a bit.

**Harry unsteadily walked in, and saw that it was Sirius and Saorise.**

Aries smiled at Sirius.

**Saorise was holding Aries towards her away from three occupied hospital beds.**

Several people managed to smile.

**Harry felt a jab or a crack inside him at the sight, but he put it out of his mind. **

Aries looked at Harry in befuddlement.

**Sirius was absolutely livid, Harry swore he saw the hair at the back of his neck raise. **

"Probably." James and Remus intoned.

"**Sirius?" Harry asked. He and Saorise turned to look at Harry. "Harry." Sirius said in surprise. Harry and Ron walked over towards Sirius. Ron saw something that made him swear "Bloody hell!" before rushing towards the hospital beds. Harry felt himself go cold. **

Everyone who didn't know who the poor unfortunate souls were at the edge of their seats with anticipation.

**Leo, Luna and Hermione were petrified.**

Many people looked sadly at Luna and Leo. Leo shuddered a bit and Luna's eyes lost a bit of their bright gleam.

**They looked as if they were made of stone, their skin looking cold and hard like marble floors. They had looks of shock etched into their faces. **

Several people winced badly.

**Harry felt arms snake around him. "Sorry. I'm sorry." Sirius muttered.**

"S not your fault." Leo said indignantly.

**Harry just stood there numb in his thoughts. As much as he would like to ignore it he can't help but feel—**

Aries looked imploringly at Harry, but Harry ignored him.

**Harry broke Sirius' hug and marched out of the hospital wing. "Harry?" Sirius called. Harry ignored him and kept walking as thoughts rapidly shot off in his head. Harry felt a hand grab his shoulder and he was spun around.**

Harry ignored or pretended to ignore the questioning looks he was getting.

**Sirius was giving him a concerned look that Harry had to lower his gaze from. "Harry what's wrong?" Sirius asked. **

Harry found it hard to raise his green eyes off of the floor.

"**I…t…m..au…" Harry muttered. "What?" Sirius asked. "It's my fault." Harry said just the tiniest bit louder. **

Draco looked at Harry in surprise.

"**This? No Harry, what on earth gave you that idea?" Sirius asked. "Cause last night Ron and me went to find out who the heir is and now my friends are petrified." Harry said guiltily. "Harry, this could just be a bad coincidence." Harry shook his head. **

"Never rule anything out." Moody growled.

"**The heir never attacked more than one student, and all muggleborns until now, when I started to find out more about the chamber, how can it not have anything to do with me!?" Harry asked. "If it wasn't for me everything would be fine!" **

Harry could feel his family look sadly at him.

**Sirius gave him a sad look. "Harry, what do you mean by everything?" Harry looked down. "I'm not stupid." Harry said. "I never said you were." "But everything bad that happened to us, it's all my fault." Harry said guiltily. **

"WHAT?" James asked in shock. "No Harry, it was never you're fault." Liliana said sadly. Harry said nothing and swallowed.

"**If I wasn't around this wouldn't have happened. You went to Azkaban because if it weren't for me, my parents and your wife would still be alive!" Harry felt his eyes begin to sting from tears he held onto for who knows how long. **

"That had nothing to do with you Harry." Shizuka said gently.

"**Harry, no, none of that was your fault, it was Vol-" "Well why did Voldemort attack Godric Hollow? Because it's my fault. He wanted me dead, I heard you mention it, that's why my family went into hiding, but instead I got almost everyone else killed." Harry wailed. **

"You honestly blamed yourself the entire time?" Draco asked quietly. "Yeah." Harry said so lowly that Draco barely heard him.

**Sirius had pulled him into a tight hug. "Harry none of this is your fault. Voldemort was the one who killed them, and Peter is the one who sold us out." Sirius was speaking in a tight voice at this point. "When you were in danger, your parents, and Leo's mama did what any good parent would do: put their children first." Harry was sure he was dampening Sirius' robe.**

Liliana hugged Harry at this point, and her eyes began to water.

"**Your parents loved you very very much, and I know that they would never blame you for any of this. I don't either, and Shizuka would never have done so. She might have been a bit stubborn and snarky, but she never once held a grudge, and I'm sure she won't do so now."**

"He's right this time." Shizuka sadly said.

**Harry was confused. How could Sirius not hate him?**

"I'd never hate you!" Sirius shouted with a sad kicked puppy expression.

"**I could never hate you." Sirius said as he held him by the shoulders. Harry was a bit sheepish. He must have said that out loud. **

Charlus managed to lift the corners of his mouth briefly.

"**I am not as kind as Shizuka, I have at times been a very horrible human being, and I have my own grudges but even I know that you are just as much a victim in that attack all those years ago as Leo and Aries." **

"You're not horrible!" James protested as Shizuka hugged him. Lily looked like she wanted to argue that statement, but smartly held her tongue.

**Harry broke down. He wasn't sure what he was feeling, everything inside him felt like a jumbled pile of broken glass, so all he did was cry and try to keep those ugly feelings bottled up. **

Everyone looked at Harry in concern.

**Harry wasn't sure how long he cried, but Sirius just smiled and ruffled his hair. "Aries didn't take this well either." Sirius said, Harry felt that jabbing crack stab a bit harder this time, but he didn't let it show, he couldn't.**

"Harry what was wrong?" Dorea asked in concern.

"**C'mon." Sirius led him back inside, with a comforting arm around him. Harry sank down next to Aries. Aries was unearthly quiet, and kept his head down low. Ron was horrified and sad that this happened. **

"I couldn't really believe it at the time." Ron added solemnly.

"**Madam Pomfery, a word please?" Sirius asked. When Sirius and Madam Pomfrey left the hospital room, Aries pulled at his hair. "Why them?" Ron asked bitterly.**

No one had anything to say.

**Harry gripped Leo's outstretched hand. It looked like he was holding something. "What were they doing last night?" Harry asked aloud. **

McGonagall looked down. Her students were being picked off and she did little to nothing to stop the attacks so far. She was miserably sure that was a situation she never wants to experience.

**Aries raised his head suddenly. "What if they found something?" Aries asked. "Something about the Chamber?" Harry asked. "Yeah, why else would two purebloods be petrified?" Ron asked. "Search them." Aries said.**

"Should I be concerned?" Luna asked loudly. "Nope." Ron said with red ears. She smiled sweetly at the youngest Weasley son before going back to the chapter.

**Harry was awkwardly tasked with checking Hermione. Hopefully she won't know. **

Barty chuckled weakly.

**Harry noticed that she had something balled in her hand. He was trying to pry it open when he heard the door open loudly and he spun around in a flash. Sirius marched in with a scowl and Harry knew someone's head was going to roll. **

"I rarely ever saw him get that mad." James said in shock.

**Saorise hugged Aries and kissed his forehead sadly. Harry felt something heavy slash harshly at his heart even when Saorise kissed his forehead as well.**

"Were you sick?" Neville asked. Harry shook his head no.

"**I gotta go, but I'll keep in touch." Sirius said as he gave Aries and Harry hugs before Madam Pomfrey shooed them all out of the hospital wing. Harry couldn't shake that heavy feeling that made him feel like he was going to sink, and sink, and sink into some ugly part of himself he was trying to ignore. **

Sirius looked confused.

"**What did you guys find?" Aries asked. "Luna was wearing that ring alright. I tried to get it back for you but-" Ron looked down uncomfortably. Aries patted his arm. "Not to worry. Mam said I would need extra practice getting my tolerance up." Aries said simply. **

Aries smirked a bit.

**Harry looked down. His friends get attacked the very night he goes out looking for information, that couldn't be a coincidence. He heard the monster, he's seen the writings on the wall, and he snooped around and THIS happens. Despite what Sirius said it still seemed like it was his fault.**

"Blame the freaking Heir, not yourself." James said loudly.

"**Harry, what's wrong?" Aries asked. "Yeah mate, you look like hell." Ron added.**

"Thanks for that." Harry said sarcastically. "No problem." They said in unison.

**Harry just mumbled a "nothing." Ron and Aries didn't look convinced. "Mate you can tell us." Ron said softly. "We kn-" Harry didn't exactly know why, but he snapped. **

Luna looked surprised at the next words.

"**NO YOU DON'T!" Harry bellowed with tempest in his eyes. **

Harry averted his eyes.

**Ron and Aries jumped harshly at the sudden outburst. **

As did everyone else in the room sans Harry.

"**NO ONE GETS IT! NO ONE UNDERSTANDS!" Aries raised his hands in a placating manner, as if Harry was going to attack him. "Harry, I get that this royally sucks, and that it's undeniably horrible, but-" **

"Sorry Ron."

"**SHUT UP!" Harry shouted. He glared stormily at Aries, and Aries flinched in what Harry guessed was fear. "JUST STAY AWAY FROM ME!" Harry bellowed before running as fast as he could. He heard Ron and Aries call after him, but he ignored them until he couldn't hear them at all. **

"So you finally going to let us know what that was about?" Ron asked. Harry didn't answer him.

**Harry had run towards the Quidditch pitch. It was deserted since the cancelling. Harry trudged to the back of the bleachers, and went under the stand canvas. He curled up into a small ball and cried. **

Liliana hugged Harry closer.

**It was a loud broken cry that rang with note after note of pure misery. Harry kept seeing things that weighed his mind. Sirius doting on Leo all the time. Saorise singing with Aries back at Grimmauld place. Sirius being so upset over what happened to Leo **_**like a father does**_**. Saorise hugging Aries, **_**like a mother does**_**.**

If people weren't crying, they were teary-eyed, and if they weren't teary-eyed they looked down in sorrow.

**Harry sobbed and he felt this unwanted side of him finally gave the reason to that heavy, painful feeling. Harry was an orphan. **

James looked sadly at Harry before joining in hugging Harry.

**He was all alone. His parents are lying dead in the ground somewhere. He didn't have a doting father like Leo does. He didn't have an understanding mother like Aries does. **

If someone were to look close enough, all three of the small family were crying at this point.

**Leo and Aries might not have a complete set of parents, but they still have **_**a**_** parent. Harry had no one. He had no one family specifically for him. He shared Sirius with Leo. Saorise was sort of close, but she was Aries mother, she had no connection to Harry if it wasn't for Sirius.**

Sirius looked sadly at his god son. Leo and Aries looked close to tears.

**And Harry knew, that Aries and Leo would always be their first concern because "that's what any good parent does, put their children first." He crumpled next to a post. He didn't belong. Leo and Aries belonged with their families, with their parents. He is little, unwanted, dead last Harry, and he always will be. **

Harry heard his parents mumble words of comfort and love that resurfaced all those feelings and he clutched them tightly as he sobbed quietly. He can't ever remember a time when his parents held him, and it made him ache so badly.

Luna continued sadly

**When Harry felt another wave of sobs ring out of him, the canvas furled open. Harry's tear stained face saw Daphne and Nott. Harry automatically hid his face and began to wipe any trace of his sadness.**

No one had the feeling to say anything about either Slytherin.

"**Harry?" Daphne asked in shock. "Go away." Harry mumbled into his sleeve. **

Harry smiled sadly into his hands.

"**What on earth made you go banshee?" Nott asked in unfiltered shock. Harry said nothing, as he choked out wet gasps that hurt his lungs. "Go." Harry managed to choke out.**

Harry lowered his eyes.

"**Harry, is everything alright?" Daphne asked. "That has to be the dumbest question I heard you ask Greengrass." Nott deadpanned.**

Rather than laughs, a few barely lifted smiles were on a couple faces.

**She just glared icily at him before turning back to Harry. She tugged at his sleeve. "C'me out." She mumbled. **

Harry smiled a tiny bit more.

"**Why do you care?" Harry asked with a bitterness lingering on his tongue. "You were nice to me. Seems only fair I do the same." Harry felt his mouth quiver.**

Harry felt his parents hug him tighter.

"**Potter, you're acting as if someone died." Nott said uncomfortably.**

Luna sucked in a breath as everyone winced at the poor word choice on Nott's part.

"**SHUT UP!" Harry shouted. "WHAT WOULD YOU KNOW!? I AM AN ORPHAN!" Harry admitted. Daphne and Nott jumped in shock. He felt that broken glass feeling shatter into millions of cruel pieces. "EVERY SINGLE TIME SOMEONE SAYS THAT STUPID TITLE IT'S A REMINDER THAT I HAVE NO PARENTS ANYMORE! I AM NOT A HERO! I'M FAMILY-LESS! I DON'T BELONG ANYWHERE, NOT HERE, NOT IN THE MUGGLE WORLD, ANYWHERE! I'M NOT SPECIAL, I'M JUST HARRY THE FREAKY ORPHAN!" **

"No you're not." Liliana sobbed. "You're our son, and we love you." James said quietly. "You will always be loved by us Harry, we are so, so, so sorry we left you alone, and we never wanted anything bad to ever happen to you, we just wanted you to be safe and sound."

Liliana couldn't stop crying, and James kissed the bridge of her nose as he ruffled Harry's hair. "This time around, you won't lose us." James promised as he held Harry's head to his chest. "Not on my watch."

**Harry was out of breath, but he wasn't sure if it was from the shouting, or from the sobs that came back relentlessly. The Chamber issue, all of his bottled feelings from before he just broke that bottle and spilled everything out in front of two slytherins he's barely talked to. **

Some slytherins would normally sneer at the vulnerability, but it was hard to be stiff when exposed to the after math of a tragedy.

**Harry felt arms circle him. He didn't move or say anything he just sat there like a broken toy. "I had no idea." Harry heard Daphne whisper sadly. Harry heard a rustling on the grass next to him, and felt a shoulder touch his. Harry turned and saw Nott sitting next to him silently with an unreadable expression.**

Draco looked a bit surprised and a small glimmer of understanding sparked in his eyes.

**Harry felt Daphne slide tears into his messy hair and shoulder. "Why aren't you two rubbing it in?" Harry asked in confusion. Daphne gasped and looked Harry in the eye. "I would never!" She shouted. **

Draco nodded.

"**There may be some heartless pricks in Slytherin, but I can tell you we're not." Nott added. "Why're you here then?" Harry asked. "We heard a loud miserable crying, and thought a banshee got on the grounds. Nott here thought it was your captain crying over the quidditch cancelling again." Daphne added. **

"I remember that." Leo said with a wet laugh. "He is obsessed." Harry added.

**Harry gave a sob-y chuckle. "Ugh! Enough with that face!" Nott whined before he rubbed Harry's face down with the sleeve of Harry's robe. "Be gentle!" Daphne hissed. Nott rolled his eyes. "The last thing he needs is you babying him, Greengrass." Nott said. **

Liliana and James hugged Harry a bit more.

**Nott turned and looked at him. "Look, I don't know how you're feeling, not really. I've lost people too, and it's unbearable, so you must be the saddest bloke in the whole dang nation." Harry blinked a bit and he felt Daphne hug him again. "And I hate to admit it, but I can't believe that stupid nickname could actually be that bad, and didn't think at all about it. I used to think you were this spoiled brat that was hero worshipped." Nott added. **

"I second that." Draco added quietly.

"**Me too. No one really seems to think or do much in Britain anymore huh?" Daphne asked.**

"Unfortunately." Several adults hissed.

**Harry looked at the two of them strangely. "I don't need pity." Harry mumbled. "Trust me, pity is hard to come by from either of us." Nott huffed haughtily. **

"You have no idea." Draco and Harry said at the same time. They looked at each other in shock briefly before looking away.

"**Nott's a moron." Daphne huffed back just as haughtily, causing Nott to glare at her. "What he means is that we're not pitying, we're being sympathetic." Daphne said. "No I'm sure I meant what I said." Harry chuckled a bit.**

He did now too.

**They sat there in a tense quiet. "Where did people get that idea of me? I didn't even know I was a wizard until my eleventh birthday." Harry wondered. The two looked shocked. "Really?" They asked in unison. **

"We have to be reminded of this crapola again?" James asked.

"**Yeah, I'm surprised it didn't make the prophet: Boy Who Lived Raised by Cruel Muggles." Harry snorted derisively. They looked like their eyes were going to pop out. "Wait wait wait wait wait!" Daphne said quickly. "You mean to say that for an entire decade you were raised into thinking you were a muggle?" She asked as if she couldn't believe it. **

"I didn't at first either." Draco said.

"**Yeah. I wasn't much of a good muggle. My so called muggle family told everyone I was a no good ragamuffin that was blessed to be taken in by them." Harry snarled. "But I have never seen you mean to anyone besides Draco." Daphne said in disbelief. "Why do you not like Malfoy?" Nott asked. "He insulted my friends." Harry said. **

"Truce?" Harry asked as he extended a hand at Draco. Draco unsteadily shook the hand.

**The two slytherins shared a look. "Fair enough for a Gryffindor." Nott said. "Gee thanks, that's wonderful coming from a Slytherin." Harry drawled. **

"Were you mimicking Draco?" Leo asked. Draco shot him a glare. Harry just gave a trouble making smile that was hidden by his mother's arm.

"**Hey!" The two said loudly. "Chill." Harry said like Leo would. He winced a bit at himself at the thought. "My grandmother was a Slytherin." Harry said. **

Dorea smiled.

**They looked interested at that.**

Several people chuckled.

"**My whole family's Slytherin." Daphne said and Nott echoed her words. It was tensely quiet again. "Hey Nott, do you have a quidditch team?" Harry asked. Nott looked at him blankly. "Yeah, Puddlemere United." Nott said. "You?" He asked Harry. **

Ron shook his head with an easy to miss smile on his freckled face.

"**Not really." Harry admitted. "Actually back…home" He said this with the slightest reluctance "there's an international conflict." Nott arched an eyebrow. "Sirius is a fan of England, Leo supports Japan, Aries and his mum support Ireland, and I support Italy." Harry said. "I usually support England, but I am partial to France as well." Nott said with a friendlier look than before. **

Charlus smiled slightly.

"**Boys and quidditch." Daphne huffed. Harry smiled apologetically. "What do you like Daphne?" Harry asked. She blinked in shock, as if she wasn't expecting that question. She looked at him in for a good while. "I like to dance." She said.**

"Oh yeah." Several people from the future said.

**Nott snorted. "That's nice. I can't, I have two left feet." Harry said. The two slytherins looked down at his toes. "No you don't." They said. "It's a muggle expression." Harry said with a laugh. **

He chuckled a bit too.

**They just sat there and talked. It was nice.**

His grandparents shared a glad smile.

**Harry had no idea that Nott was a decent quidditch fan, and it was fun to argue over international games from the past. **

Ron and Harry shared a knowing look.

**Daphne like to talk about her sister Asteria every now and then, but she mostly talked to Harry about school stuff like how Lockhart was a blithering idiot, and that this Chamber issue could have been dealt with earlier if the Aurors were brought in after the very first attack on a student. **

McGonagall groaned and many people hissed and cursed the name Albus Too Many Middle Names Dumbledore.

**Harry wasn't sure how it happened, but he grinned as he talked to Nott and Daphne as if they were his friends.**

"That's it." Luna said.


	17. Chapter 17

**{Sorry it took so long to update! I had a lot of trouble working with this chapter. Anyways, I hope you like it!}**

Ron picked up the book and flipped to the next page.

**Chapter 17. To Dream of a Nightmare**

Several people were anxiously curious about the title.

**Harry was down eating breakfast with Ron, Aries and Neville. Velvela had come back, but she was currently trying to go and see their friends in the hospital wing.**

"She kept saying that Madam Pomfrey refused to let anyone in without permission." Neville said.

"**You seriously managed to make friends with Slytherins?" Ron asked incredulously.**

Those from the future didn't say anything, but the look in their eyes showed that there was something important being left unsaid.

**Harry rolled his eyes and nodded. "Yeah. Nott's not too bad actually, he's an avid quidditch fan." Harry pointed out. **

"I know his father isn't." Lucius pointed out. Draco nodded.

**Ron snorted into his towering plate of food. That's when Velvela came stomping in with a thick old book in her hands. **

Leo quirked an eyebrow.

"**Where the bloody hell did you get that?" Ron asked. "I remember Leo kept reading this before—y'know." She said with a flash of sadness in her hazel eyes.**

"Try feeling what goes on under the surface." Aries said dismissively with a wave of his hand.

**Aries looked really interested. "You got that from his dorm?" Harry asked. She nodded.**

"Wait, how does she know where my stuff is?" Leo asked. "You know why." Luna pointed out.

"**Maybe he found something dealing with the chamber?" Ron asked.**

Leo gave Ron a questioning look that was ignored.

**Aries took the thick book and began to flip through pages. "This is a book about the dead." Aries whispered. **

"The Grimoire." Sirius said. They nodded. "I might like to look through it." Shizuka said thoughtfully.

"**Do you think he was looking into that medium stuff he could do?" Harry asked Aries. **

Aries and Harry sent Leo exasperated looks. Leo just smiled happily at them.

**Aries didn't say anything as he kept flipping through each old page carefully. Harry spotted something from the very edge of the book's pages. Harry reached at it and opened to the page that the thing was poking out of. **

"It's not any plain old thing." Leo huffed.

**When Harry turned the page he saw that the thing was in fact the ribbon Leo used to tie his hair with. **

"Wait you kept that?" Draco asked. "Sure. It was a gift from family." Leo said. Draco looked confused, but didn't say anything on the matter.

**Harry had wondered what he did with it after his hair cut. Aries' eyebrows creased as he skimmed the pages. **

"You had me worried a bit." Aries huffed.

"**Why was he reading about exorcisms?" Aries asked. **

Several people looked expectantly at Leo, but he kept his lips sealed.

**Harry pulled the book over and read it. **

_**One form of exorcisms is with the use**_

_**Of seals. The exorcist can take further**_

_**Control over which spirits can enter or exit **_

_**The area through a difficult procedure.**_

_**Items:**_

_**One Block of salt**_

_**One piece of pure silver**_

_**One bushel of sage**_

_**One piece of cold iron**_

_**Four pieces of Quartz**_

_**Parchment and **_

_**Red Ink**_

_**Procedure:**_

_**Create a fire at the very center of the area **_

_**Around the fire at the four cardinal points **_

_**Write four runes: Protection, Power, Binding and Camouflage**_

_**Placement of items:**_

_**Salt—North**_

_**Silver—East**_

_**Sage—South**_

_**Iron—West**_

_**Place the four quartz crystals into the fire until white hot**_

_**Place one crystal on each item.**_

_**Leave the items there until imbued with the**_

_**Powers of the runes and items (A color change and illumination)**_

_**Then take each item and burn them to ash all together**_

_**To allow entrance to certain spirits**_

_**Write their names upon the parchment**_

_**And burn to ash**_

_**Place each crystal at each cardinal point that they correspond to **_

_**The seal should be complete**_

"That's what Dumbledore did?" James asked. No one answered him, but dark emotions flickered on their faces at the name Dumbledore.

"**Let's deal with the living first please?" Velvela asked.**

"Priorities." Barty said.

**Harry nodded. "What do we know of the Heir?" Aries prompted. **

Several of those from the future had ugly expressions on.

"**Hates muggleborns." Neville supplied.**

Neville glared at the book.

"**Most likely a Slytherin." Ron said stubbornly.**

Septimus shook his head silently.

"**He killed a girl fifty years ago." Velvela added. **

McGonagall had a sad look in her eyes.

"**And has control over a great big monster." Harry muttered. **

Harry was mumbling something under his breath.

**Harry was confused. Why would Leo mark this page? "Maybe we need to talk to a ghost?" "Har-" Aries' eyes lit up and he looked at Harry. There was a loud clattering sound and Harry turned to see Ginny.**

Several of those from the future groaned. "You were on to something weren't you?" Arcturus asked. Aries nodded.

**She looked really pale and had spilled a large platter of scrambled eggs onto the floor. She haphazardly scrapped them back onto the plate before running out of the Great Hall. **

"What caused her to do that?" Liliana asked. Septimus looked worried.

"**What was that about?" Harry asked. **

No one answered him.

**Harry looked around and saw a small group of first year girls whispering, he ignored them, and saw a solemn set of twins. They hadn't even cracked a lame joke once when Ron told them about Leo and Luna. **

Leo and Luna wore shocked expressions. "Really?" Leo asked. Ron mouthed something at him that looked vaguely like Honorary Weasley.

**Harry was trying to think of a way of getting them out of their slump when the mail came in. Harry ignored the screeching of owls until he got several letters. There was a small pile of letters sitting in front of his plate.**

"I'm really bummed you don't get a whole lot of letters." Dorea huffed. "It's fine." Harry said.

"**Why do I have all these letters?" Harry asked. "Might be that fame of yours." Aries said as he fed Mordred some small bits of sausage. **

"But why only now?" Lucius and Sirius asked in unison. They looked at each other in horror before turning towards their future wives.

**Harry shuffled the letters together into a neat pile so that he could pack them away for reading later. **

Harry shuddered.

**They went about their normal classes, well as normal as they could be. They were escorted to and from classes by the students. **

"Why bother to keep the school open?" McGonagall asked. Those from the future exchanged a look.

**It was rather annoying since Harry wanted to go and chat with Nott and Daphne again. **

Harry smiled a bit, Charlus noted.

**They had chatted, all under the quidditch stand, and Harry really enjoyed going there when he couldn't spend time with his other friends.**

Harry wore a sheepish smile.

**Neville was helping Velvela with Herbology and catching up with the work she missed. **

Neville smiled as if apologetically at Aries who was wearing a neutral expression.

**Ron was trying to get the twins back to their prankster selves, heck, even Percy was shocked by their change.**

"It was freakin' bizarre." Ron said. Septimus frowned in concern.

**Aries was more withdrawn. He spent more time reading and making sure no one messed with Luna's stuff. **

Luna smiled at Aries appreciatively.

**Harry got his chance when Lockhart was late to escort them to the Great Hall for their free period. **

"What's he doing?" McGonagall asked sternly. "Probably painting his nails." James deadpanned.

**He saw Nott and Daphne sneak off down the hall as Ron grumbled at Neville about Lockhart. When everyone was not noticing him, Harry quietly and quickly dashed away. **

Ron and Neville sent Harry shocked looks. "Sorry." Harry said sheepishly.

**After a few sharp turns and sprints he managed to get down to the quidditch stand unseen, and quickly slipped inside. "Took you long enough Potter." Nott snorted.**

Harry rolled his eyes with a smile.

"**Shove off Theodore." Daphne huffed. "Glad you made it Harry." She said with a kinder voice.**

"The Ice Queen of Slytherin." Draco drawled. "Actually that would be me." Narcissa said with a single eyebrow raised at her future son. Draco went pink and mumbled an apology.

**Harry smiled at her as he placed his bag down and sat against a beam. "It's fine Daphne." Harry said with a grin. Nott sat down across from him and Daphne sat at his side. **

"You have friends in every house huh?" Frank asked.

"**So any good news?" Daphne asked. Harry blinked before pulling out that stack of letters. "I got more letters this morning." Harry said as he showed the stack to Nott and Daphne. "I don't really get a lot truth be told." Harry said. **

Dorea shared a look with Charlus.

"**Odd." Nott said with a stern expression. "What's odd?" Harry asked. "Well you are the most famous kid in the Magical world." Nott said.**

"Is Nott sr. like that too?" Neville asked. "Not really, he usually keeps to himself, and doesn't bother with anyone else." Lucius said. "It's surprising to find out he had a kid." Barty added.

"**True." Daphne hummed with a thoughtful look. "You would think that you would get fan mail." When Daphne said those words Harry's mind involuntarily went back to that detention with Lockhart and he grimaced. **

Everyone pulled a face at the mention.

"**If it's anything like the stuff Lockhart made me address for detention then I'm glad for not having fan mail." Harry said causing Daphne to snicker and Nott to snort. **

"Fan mail is weird." Harry hummed.

"**You should at least go through the letters." Daphne said. Harry opened the first letter and groaned. "What?" "'Dear Harry Potter, I am eternally grateful to you for what you have done. I hope you receive this, and would be delighted if you could write back. I'm so sorry for not writing earlier, but I had no idea where you were. I was wondering if you were going to go on any adventures soon, and if you are what are they? I am most eager to hear your reply. Signed, Katrine Grouper.'" Harry put it back in the envelope with a reddening face and groaned. **

Now he just looked mildly annoyed at the ceiling.

**He spotted Nott grabbing a letter. "Let's see what other awful letters you got." Nott said with a smirk. Harry glared at him, but Nott just raised an eyebrow challengingly. **

Harry rolled his eyes with a grin.

"**Boys." Daphne groaned even though she was reaching for a letter too.**

"She does have an ear for gossip." Harry said. "At least she's not like Pansy." Draco said with a pinched expression.

**They read out letters and constantly commented on them. Some were decent letters, some were giddy kids who had yet to go to Hogwarts asking about his magic, and he even got a couple from some adults who were asking if it was okay to name their first born sons after him.**

"Should I be flattered or shocked by this?" James asked. "Disturbed." Harry and Liliana chorused.

**Nott was merciless with his comments ranging from "Moron" and "Troll" to "Do you not have a life to live you total wanker" **

Several people laughed at the last insult. "What brought that on?" Barty asked. Ron kept snorting with laughter as he tried to read the next line. He managed to succeed, but he still had a goofy grin on his freckled face.

**(that was for a writer asking if Harry would like to become an 'Honorary' member of his small Polish clan that according to Daphne are known for their sausage business). **

More laughter, giggles, chortles and guffaws.

**Daphne was not as contributive, but she had a sharp tongue when concerning fan girls. Harry picked up the last letter and unfolded it. "Read it!" Nott said as he relaxed against a beam. **

Several of those from the future grimaced or glared at the book.

_**Dearest, Sweetest, Loving Harry,**_

"Okay, who the hell are you?" James asked nervously.

_**It's me again.**_

"And who are you?" James asked again.

_**It truly breaks and tears at my heart that you haven't returned my other letters.**_

"What other letters?" Liliana asked worriedly.

_**Especially on the anniversary of when we first saw each other at that large feast. **_

"Does that mean your Sorting feast?" Remus asked nervously.

_**It's alright though, I know how busy you get when you're so famous. **_

"But you hate you're fame." Alice said.

_**I wish you would give up that fame though. **_

"Why?" Dorea asked protectively.

_**The thought of other people knowing your face, your name and anything else about you boils my blood. **_

"Umm." Shizuka said awkwardly.

_**Although that attempt to spark our relationship with the car was truly sweet, it made me giddy to know you wanted to have me stand by your side was adorable, but I wish you wouldn't put yourself in any danger. **_

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Sirius asked.

_**I know you have to hide us from the world, but I am getting impatient. Everyone is trying to keep you to themselves, away from me, away from us. It makes me so mad. **_

"And you are obviously insane." Moody growled.

_**I miss you so much. **_

"WHO ARE YOU!?" James asked again.

_**With all of this fear of the Chamber and the Heir, we haven't been able to go on our regular outings. **_

"What outings? Harry never went out with someone else besides his friends." Charlus asked.

_**Remember that time you were walking down the corridor and you were talking with those friends of yours, and we brushed against each other?**_

"That's not—I don't even know." Lily said awkwardly.

_**I keep that lock of hair in my album, until I can get ahold of a good frame. **_

"Merlin Potter." Draco said in shock.

_**It's a shame about Creevy though. I really wanted to get some of his pictures so that I can always see you, even when we're apart. **_

"And here I thought Creevy had it bad." Ted said with a nervous laugh.

_**A good thing is that now that the Heir is not targeting only muggleborns anymore, soon we'll be the last two people in Hogwarts!**_

"HOW IS THAT A GOOD THING!?" Several people asked in shock.

_**Then we can live out a happily ever after like in my dreams. Just you and me with a grand castle to call home. **_

"NO. WAY." Harry deadpanned.

_**My conscious was talking to me earlier. He was telling me to just be assertive for once in my life, and to finally make you mine. Should I listen to him or should I get rid of him too so that you can truly be mine?**_

"What the fuck?" James and Sirius asked.

_**Should I? Should I be the one to make the step towards happily ever after? It's not that hard. I've been practicing in my spare time. **_

"Practicing what?" Leo asked nervously.

_**All it takes is one spell, two words, and our fate will be sealed. **_

"YOU NEED COUNSELING!" Andromeda shouted.

_**Ah, Fate. Fate smiles upon us, Darling. How can it not for someone as heaven-sent as you? **_

"STOP WRITING!" Frank begged.

_**Ah, but I am not as charmed as you. That's why I have to keep a distance, so that when we join together, I can truly be the perfect match for you.**_

"I don't like the sound of this." Charlus moaned.

_**I'm almost there though. Soon we can get the happy ending I've always dreamed of for so long.**_

"No thank you." James said. "Do not want." Harry added.

_**Truly, Madly, Deeply, Longingly loving yours till Death**_

_**Your Soul Mate**_

"Well that was fucked up." Leo deadpanned. "Oh, you have no idea." Harry muttered.

**Harry dropped the letter in shock. Daphne had a hand over her mouth in horror, and Nott was highly disturbed by the letter just as much as Harry was. "What the bloody hell?" Nott asked in shock.**

"That was my first thought actually." Harry added.

**Harry felt Daphne put her arms around him. He nervously returned the gesture as Nott snatched the letter. "Wait a tic… Does that mean your stalker's here? At Hogwarts?" Harry paled to a deathly white.**

"Marvelous." James whined into his hands.

"**What does it mean by again? I've never gotten a letter like this before in my life." Harry said in a panic he was trying to push down.**

"Best thing you can do is keep calm." Moody said.

"**I would be more watchful Harry." Daphne said in his ear. She was right. What could he do if he didn't know who it was that was… obsessed with him?**

"Go get help?" Augusta asked.

"**Maybe we should stop meeting for a while then?" Harry suggested. The last thing he wanted was for his new friends to have to deal with his problems.**

"You selfless prat." Ron snorted as Aries and Leo hit Harry upside his head.

**Nott grimaced a bit before nodding. "If the professors are anything like the Aurors, then they won't be able to help you unless you have a name and proof." Nott added. **

"HEY!" Several people shouted.

"**How do you know that? I actually know an Auror." Harry said thinking of Tonks.**

The Tonks looked down at Nymphadora with a mixture of pride and reluctance.

"**Let's just say that the Ministry has strong influences on who the Aurors can lock up." Nott said with an unreadable look in his dark eyes. **

"Not this time around." Moody growled threateningly.

**Harry grimaced. Sirius and Hagrid went to Azkaban with no evidence against them, who's to say that the opposite isn't true?**

"Unfortunately." Aries sighed.

"**Don't worry too much Harry." Daphne said with a reassuring look. "I heard it's not uncommon for celebrities to have gotten love letters from fans, maybe this will all blow over?"**

Dorea had a thoughtful look on her face. Harry met her eyes and gave her a small, knowing smile.

**Harry quirked a smile even though he couldn't shake this blanket of fear that seemed to cling to him. **

Draco rolled his eyes. "Gryffindork." He muttered under his breath.

**They left their hideout and snuck back into the castle. Harry swallowed a lump in his throat as he cautiously separated from Daphne and Nott. He looked up and it seems that the castle seemed so more unwelcoming and colder than he would have thought possible. **

"Fear getting to you can have that effect." Moody said nonchalantly.

**Harry managed to get back into the group of Gryffindors who're on their way to potions. **

"Talk about a shitty day." Sirius grumbled.

**As Lockhart prattled on about something Harry kept towards the center of his classmates. He found himself shifting his eyes at every intersecting corridor, trying to find a pair of eyes following him, but at the same time hoping that he wouldn't.**

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" Harry, Ron, Neville, Leo and Aries shouted. Moody jumped slightly in his chair at the words. "How do you-?" Harry grinned at him. "Learned from the best." Harry said.

**He should be brave and try to find out who this creep was, but Harry couldn't shake the idea that whoever wrote that letter was bad news.**

"No shit." Harry and Draco drawled in unison.

**Based off that letter this person was obviously not in their right mind, and they seemed to focus a lot of attention on him.**

"You have a knack for understating things mate." Ron said, interrupting himself.

**He was pulled out of his thoughts by going down to Potions. **

"Urgh." James, Sirius and Leo groaned.

**In Potions Harry saw Daphne giving him a sturdy look that seemed to help ease his mind, and Nott gave a curt nod that he took as a friendly gesture.**

Dorea and Charlus shared a confused look briefly.

**After Snape went about his usual prowl, sneer and favor the Slytherins, they were escorted back to their common rooms. **

"Boring, this is so boring, this is so boring, get to the show~!" James and Sirius sang off key.

**When they got back in Gryffindor Tower, Harry felt a spike of fear.**

Aries gave Harry a questioning look that could easily be interpreted as unamused.

**His dorm room was a total mess. Books and parchment were all over the floor, various clothes were tossed in every direction, and even the mattresses looked like they were assaulted. **

"What on earth happened?" McGonagall asked in shock.

"**What the bloody hell happened?" Ron asked in shock.**

"You think like Minnie!" Leo said with a large grin. McGonagall hung her head and groaned as Sirius barked a laugh.

**Everyone began to dig around. When Ron was trying to help Neville get his pajama pants down from a bed post, **

"Really?" Alice asked. Neville nodded. "It was really up there." Ron tacked on.

**Harry dug around the books on the floor. Everything was accounted for except for one. "It's gone." Harry said in shock. "Tom Riddle's diary is gone." **

"Oh no!" Lily gasped. "Your only clue to what happened is gone!" Shizuka added.

**Ron and Neville look at him with bugged eyes. "No." Neville said. "But who would do this?" Ron asked. "It has to be a Gryffindor, who else could get into the Tower?" Neville asked. **

The three boys were sharing a look, and for some reason Ron looked paler than usual.

**Harry paused. Did that letter have anything to do with it? Harry pulled out the letter and looked down at it as if it were going to admit it trashed the dorm.**

"Never rule anything out." Moody said.

"**What's that Harry?" Neville asked. Before Harry could pocket it Ron snatched it out of his hand. **

"Rude." Harry huffed. Ron looked blandly at him and gave him a rude hand gesture.

**He and Neville read it and slowly their faces went from ick to SWEET MOTHER OF MERLIN shock.**

"And I missed this?" Aries asked.

"**Harry why didn't you tell us about this?" Ron asked. "I just got that letter today!" Harry said as he tried to swipe the letter back, but Ron held it way above his head. **

"Sorry, but you're a specky midget." Ron said. "Thanks Ron." Harry said sarcastically.

"**Harry what if this and the letter are connected?" Ron asked. Harry grimaced. Neville looked worriedly at him "Anyways we should tell someone abo-"**

"What now?" Frank asked.

"**LOOK WHAT I FOUND!" Seamus shouted from a corner of the dorm. He was holding up a piece of parchment with a flailing arm.**

"Is the perpetrator really that arrogant?" Moody asked.

**They met Seamus halfway as Seamus read the parchment aloud.**

Several people looked very curious.

"**Sorry about the mess, but it couldn't be helped when you've come across something that valuable that doesn't belong to you." "Like it belonged to YOU." Ron sneered. "It is truly pitiful that two purebloods were left incapacitated." Harry grimaced at the words. "But it is a small price to pay for the greater good. Signed The Heir of Slytherin."**

"WHAT!?"

**Seamus dropped the parchment when he read the name. **

Harry, Ron and Neville snickered at the memory.

**Harry picked it up and looked at it intensely. That neat script looked vaguely familiar, but where did he recognize it? **

Harry was grumbling under his breath.

**Harry turned to Ron. "Pass me the letter." Harry said with an extended hand. Ron forked it over and Harry help the two side by side. **

Charlus grinned a bit.

**The letter from his admirer was messier, with a harder slant and had several ink blots on the letter. "They don't match." Harry said lowly. **

"Great. As if I had enough nut jobs to worry about." Sirius said sarcastically.

"**What?" Seamus asked loudly. Ron scooted next to Harry and grimaced. **

"Believe that fame is a bitch now?" "Yep."

"**Yeah, the hand writings different." Ron spat.**

"Captain Obvious." Leo coughed.

"**Wait so Harry has an obsessive fan, AND the Heir of Slytherin just broke into our dorm room?" Neville asked.**

"Uh huh." Harry said.

**It was quiet for a couple of seconds. "We need McGonagall." They all said. **

"And that's it." Ron said as he held the book out for whoever wanted it next.


End file.
